DPMJ: The Sekirei Initiative
by lostsoldierS636
Summary: Dante decided to visit an old friend. He would've seen him if the TARDIS hadn't put him smack dab in the middle of a very dangerous game. Prequel to Rose, Clone and Darkness, Rosario Vampire Season 1, and Winter War Arc.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

The TARDIS came to a complete halt as Dante looked up from his book. He expected to arrive at to Mois Eisley Spaceport to meet with Han and Lea, who in turn would take him to Luke, but he didn't expect to arrive so soon. By his calculations, he wasn't to arrive for another two days. Dante checked the monitor and frowned when he saw the coordinates he was at weren't even close to where he wanted to be. He started going around flipping switches and pressing buttons, but nothing happened. Letting out a heavy breath, he mumbled, "Well, if you won't start, let's see where we are."

He procceded to press a switch that caused a part of the wall to slide up to reveal a screen. Then an image came to view which showed a vast city. He was impressed to see where he landed here due to the fact that everything looked advanced but only by an estimated five years from his universe. A smile was plastered on his face until the scanner zoomed in on a railway sign that said:

_Welcome to Shinto Teito_

The smile was replaced with a deep frown. Out of all the multiple universes and galaxies he could've wound up in, she took him to here. He had wounded up in a world which peace and prosperity were to be upsetted by a madman's silly game. The teen sighed and leaned against the console. He knew it was a bad idea to come here, but she wouldn't let him leave in a great time of need. Dante sighed, straightened himself out and said, "Alright. But I'm doing this only because you knew that going back to train with Luke was going to put a strain on me."

With that he opened the door that led to the deeper interior of the ship and started walking. He walked and walked until he found a door labeled: **The Armory**.

He pushed the door open and looked down a mass corridor which had multiple different armor, battle gear and equipment all on the sides. These spanned from the time of cave men, to wars that raged across the stars. Dante procceded to walk down until he spotted a suit in which he was very familiar with since it was a gift he received from a friend. After taking the attire off the manikin, he put it inside if a very large duffle bag in which he placed a sword inside as well. He then went to his room where he packed all necessities, from clothes to toiletries, inside as well. Dante hefted the bag and found it was still pretty light. He then went to another room which was labeled: **Lab**.

Opening to doors, he found himself looking at what seemed to be a workshop. A very messy workshop. There was random tools, wires and equipment scattered across which made it looked like it was ransacked. But it wasn't, it was just the way it looked.

'Note to self: Build or buy service droids to clean lab.' He thought.

He stepped over the stranded items until him came across a vault in which he pressed in the numbers 91939. With a click it opened to reveal...a black and red colored iPhone 5c. But this was no ordinary phone. In fact this was the first project he ever worked on when becoming a resident of the TARDIS. This phone allowed him to hack into any device, even ones with claimed near impossible locks, in less than twenty five seconds. Besides that it had what every touch screen mobile device had. If there was another addition that should be mentioned, is that it's both battery and solar powered. After grabbing the phone and placing it in his pocket, he also spotted a random iPhone charger cord. He was planning on tinkering with, but must've forgotten about till now. Dante grabbed that and a power adapter and placed it in a side pocket in his duffle bag. He then walked to his room and grabbed his AlienWare laptop plus a bunch of discs and stuffed them in the bag. All this he shoved into the duffel and zipped up the bag.

With a grin, he walked back down to the console room and flipped the switch that opened the TARDIS doors. After stepping out of the blue box, he turned around and activated his Ultramatrix and said, "Activate cloak and set all power to reserve."

_"Acknowledged."_ A computerized voice spoke from it.

He turned to see the blue police box which dissapeared in shimmer of light and then saw nothing but an allyway. Or at least that's what anyone else will see. With a nod of satisfaction, he then walked over to a nearby ATM and checked to see if anyone was around. He then pulled out a somic screwdriver which had a wooden handle. It also included a metallic tip with six prongs that nested a clear diode at the end. Dante pointed it at the camera and activated until the camera shorted out. When that was done, he pointed it at the machine which caused it to spurt out money. The amount was around $20,000 in American currency which would last him for a while. He then placed the money in a side pocket that was on his duffle and pulled out a red yo-yo. Dante walked down the street while playing with it, until he noticed a large screen on one of the tall buildings show an image of a man with white messy hair, glasses and a high-collared cape(?) of some kind sitting in a high backed chair. The man looked like he was trying to pose as some kind of king with the way he was seated; with his hands on the large arm rests on either side and his legs crossed as he sat straight up with an imperious look on his face. He scoffed as he rounded the corner and bumped into another person. It was a young man with black hair and eyes that looked around Dante's age who had been mumbling about 'failing twice' and 'entrance exams' or some nonsense.

"You ok?" Dante asked extending his hand out.

The man looked at the offered hand Dante had offered and before taking it and allowing him to be pulled up.

"Er,...it's alright. I should've looked were I was going." The teen said straightening himself out.

"I suppose we should both be more careful." The forginer replied. "Anyway, good luck on your next entrance exams."

"What?! How did you know about my exams?!" The teen asked in shock.

"Um, you were talking about failing your exams twice right before I ran into you."

"Oh..."

The kid looked embarrassed, and who can blame him? Dante had this sort of problem way before his adventures in the TARDIS. So in a way he sympathized with him.

"Anyway, take more care to watch your surroundings."

"Right."

"AH! Get out the way please!"

On instinct, Dante pushed the kid out of the way sending to a safer distance. But before he could react, he looked up to see a girl falling before him was brunette and had extremely large breasts. She smashed into his stomach with enough force to send him crashing into the ground and creating a decently sized crater.

"Ow...the...hell?" Dante blinked as he saw a tight, toned and shapely rear clad in white panties. He was too dazed to be embarrassed but heard a slight groan.

"Ow... I should have known that building was way to high to jump off of..." The girl mumbled as she crawled off of him.

Now that he got a better look at her he saw that she was a well-endowed young woman with short, brown hair and a well developed body figure. She was wearing a short red skirt and upper clothes that resemble the traditional clothing worn by the miko. She was also wearing a pair of red gloves that looked like they were used for battle. The girl turned around and Dante got to see the most cutest innocent face he had ever saw.

"Oh, you're the person who caught me, aren't you? Thank you very much." She said with a warm smile.

Dante gave her a grin. "Pas de problème."

"Huh?" The girl gave him a confused look.

"It's French for 'no problem''. Aside from that, are you alright?"

"Um yes, I think I'm alright."

It was then that Dante's sixth sense kicked into gear.

"Look out!" He shouted as he quickly got up and grabbed the girl to avoid a blast of electricity.

From what he could tell, there wasn't a single cloud in the sky and no power lines broken so what-? Dante looked in the direction the girl was looking in to see two beautiful women – twins from the looks of them – in leather bondage costumes.

He promptly rose an eyebrow.

"You can run all you want, but nothing will come of it." The one of the left said. She was wearing a dark purple leather suit.

"So just fight us and we'll get this over with quickly." The other one said. This one was wearing a red suit of the same make.

"I can't! At least, not right now!" The brunette that had run into him said.

Dante put two and two together to see that they had been chasing her.

Instinctively, he shouted, "Hey!" And rolled up his left sleeve and activated the Ultramatrix. After a momment of scrolling, he found what he was looking for.

'Might as well use it here then not at all.' He thought before slamming the dial which caused a flash of bright red light to appear turning the three girls attention to him. After it cleared, they saw that nothing had changed about him, heck, the twins didn't even notice him at first. Dante looked up at the two with determination and confidence.

"Stay out this human! This isn't your fight!" One of the twins shouted.

"On the contrary," He replied. "Every fight is my fight."

The other twin laughed mockingly. "If you won't get out of our way then you will die!" She then shot another blast of electricity in which Dante just chuckled and held out his right hand. The burnette was about to pull him away, but stopped when he saw that the electricity had stopped dead center of where his right hand was, thrashing in the air wildly. Dante flexed his fingers in which the bolt then traveled down his arms and back before going into his left hand, all without harming him. The twins stood in shock.

"No way! There is no way a human can do that!" One twin said in disbeleif.

Dante just shook his head and let out a chuckle. "As a wise man once told me, 'much to learn, you still have'."

With that, Dante pulled back his arm and shot it forwards causing the bolt to shoot back. But the bolt had somewhat had gotten bigger. When the twins tired stopping it, it wouldn't recede back to them as the bolt struck, causing the two to shout in pain due to the alteration of their bolt. Normally this wouldn't hurt them, but whatever Dante did to the lightining, made them feel like their entire being to feel an excruciating amount of pain.

The burnette watched in awe as she then felt a hand grab hers. She turned to see Dante looking right into her eyes as he said, "Run."

And so they ran. They ran and ran and ran until they stopped in an alley way to catch their breaths.

"Well, that was interesting." Dante said getting his breathing under control. "But my life was getting boring anyways, so I suppose I should be thanking you for giving me some form of excitement. By the way, my name's Dante, Dante Price."

"And I'm Musubi." The girl said with a very formal bow, placing her hands in front of her.

"Musubi, huh? What an odd but beautiful name."

"Why thank you! I think Dante is a nice name as well."

He chuckled. "Y'think so? Most people think Dante's an odd name. Infact it was the name of the author who wrote The Divine Comedy. Gave him more details then he expected though." Dante mumbled the last part.

"Well I like it." Musubi said, smiling at him. "Thank you for what you did back there. It was extremely brave of you to to help me out."

"It was no problem. I saw a person in need, and I helped. It's what I do."

Dante was about to ask what were the twins chasing her for, but noticed she was toppling down, eyes glazed over. In the blink of an eye, he scooped her up and carried her bridal style. Looking around to if anyone was around, he tensed his legs and dissapeared, the only thing left a small puff of dust.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Musubi woke up the next day. Yawning a little she looked around to see that she was in a small hotel room. She was laying in a futon, and there was another futon next to hers that was neatly made and looked like someone had just gotten out of bed. She didn't feel like she was in any danger, but she was curious to know where she was and how she had gotten there.

As she was continuing her observations of the room, noting that it was very bare and only had the most basics one would expect to find in a room – lamp, dresser, closet – Dante entered through a door on her left. Seeing her up, he smiled.

"Good morning, Musubi. Did you sleep well?"

"I did!" Musubi replied cheerfully. A confused look then crossed her face as she looked around. The room was unfamiliar to her, and she couldn't help but ask,

"Um... where are we?"

"Just a hotel room I managed to secure get us. I didn't want to spend hours upon hours of looking for an apartment while you were out."

"Thank you, Dante!" She gave him a smile of such emotion that it made him lean back a bit.

"Your welcome now, you must be hungry by now. Am I right?"

As if in answer to his words Musubi's stomach rumbled, that is, if having what sounded like a roaring dinosaur shake the room they were in could truly be considered a mere rumble.

Musubi's eyes grew really large as a puppy dog like look came to her face. It was quite easily the most adorable thing he had ever seen. "Yes."

Dante gave the girl a grin. "I'm glad to see you're hungry, otherwise all that hard work I spent making breakfast would have just gone to waste."

This peeked the burnette's interest as drool formed on her bottom lip. "Breakfast?"

He gave her a nod and said, "Yep. Stay here while I go get it."

After a few minutes, Dante returned with two trays, one piled with food while the other had a modest amount. He placed the piled tray infornt of Musubi who squealed with delight and instantly started wolfing down her food. This elected a chuckle from Dante as he started eating his food at a steady pace. Then a question popped into his head.

'What is Musubi to me?' He thought. 'A friend? Can't be, I've only known her for a couple of hours. A companion? Well we haven't run into anything I normally fight so that's out. A...a...lover? Ok what the hell am I thinking?! *Sigh* Well I guess we'll find out sooner or later.'

It was just as his train of thought was ending that Musubi finished her breakfast. She looked at Dante as her eyes once again got big, and this time tears seemed to be leaking out of the corner of them.

"Yes?"

"Oh Dante... thank you so much," She said in an overly emotional voice. "I owe you everything. Not only did you save me but you gave me food too."

"Don't mention, I was more then happy to help you. Personally, I believe that if you have the power to help someone in need, then you should. There's not much purpose for having the power to help others if you don't even use it."

Musubi looked at him wide eyed. "That's the most incredible thing I've ever heard anyone say."

"Well it's true. In fact my mentor was the one who showed me the full aspect of this." He said cheerfully.

"Huh? You have a mentor?"

"Yes. Ever since I meet him, I've been helping people to the best of my ability."

"Oh." The burnette put a finger to her chin. "So where is he?"

Dante's enthusasim drained out and he said flatly, "Traveling. Taking other pupils I guess."

Musubi detected the change in tone and face, so she decided not to pursue the subject. So instead she asked, "How long have you been here? In the city?"

"Not long, just got in yesterday."

"So where are you from?"

"New York City."

"You're from the States?" She asked excitingly.

"Sure am. I originally came here for vacation, but since I'm pretty short on cash I gotta stay here and earn enough to head back."

"Hey, Dante." Musubi said, making said forginer blink.

"Yes?"

"I uh... I know I've already imposed on you quite a bit, but I have another favor I would like to ask you." She said, wringing her hands nervously in her lap.  
In attempt to reassure the girl, Dante gave her a kind smile. "Whatever you need help with just tell me and I shall do my utmost to help you out."

"Really!?" Musubi looked at him and smiled. "In that case, I was hoping I could stay here with you. You see, I don't have any place to stay so I was hoping you would let me at least stay the night."

"Of course I'll let you stay with me." Dante replied as if the answer should have been obvious from the beginning.

Then he blinked as he remembered something. Three something's actually. First was that the TARDIS needed time to rest and prepair for another voyage. Second was that he now knew he had to stay here until he was able to leave. In fact, his being there will change how the timeline unfolded. Finally, he wasn't sure if Musubi was ready to travel with him, let alone see the he then decided to show it to her when the time came.

But for now, he said, "Though I only rented this hotel room out for one night, so unfortunately we're going to need to find a more permanent place we can call home. But once we find a place to live, you can stay with me as long as you want."

"Thank you so much Dante, you've saved me once again," Musubi said with a smile.

Dante chuckled a little. "Think nothing of it. Though that does remind me, why were those girls..." he trailed of as Musubi got on her hands and knees and crawled over to him. His eyes found themselves focusing first on her face, a stunning and expressive face that held a look of such innocence, which had closed the distance towards him with a light blush staining her cheeks. "You're such a wonderful person. You're so kind and giving," she said in a voice that could only be described as awe.

'I wonder if you'd still be saying that if you knew what I've done.' Dante thought to himself. Throughout his travels he had killed many times, sometimes in self defense, sometimes in cold blood. He had long since lost count of the number of lives he had ended, but it had to be somewhere in the millions by now. It was a depressing thought, and one he didn't want to think about.

"I just wish someone like you could be my Ashikabi."

"Hmmm?" Dante blinked at the phrase. It sounded like a title of some kind, but he had never heard it before. "What's an Ashikabi?"

"The special person I'm supposed to find," Musubi said. She took one of his hands in both of her own, with Dante letting her, having not sensed any ill intent and curious to know what she was talking about. "I've been looking for mine for so long. Even though we've never met, our Ashikabi is the one we are meant to serve. It's our job to guide them to the higher sky above."

It was here that Dante started to get a warm feeling in his chest. At first it scared him because it felt like he was regenerating, but he relaxed when he didn't feel the pain or see any of the energy seeping from him. It was odd because the only other time he'd ever felt like this was when seeing something, or remembering something that would give people a warm fuzzy feeling.

He cleared his throat and said,"Anyways, since your done with breakfast why don't you go and get washed up. This place unfortunately doesn't have a bath, but it does have a shower. Then get dressed and meet me in the kitchen ok?"

"Okay!" Musubi said cheerfully as she ran into the bath room. However, despite her cheerful demeanor she was wondering about the same thing he was.

'What was that heat in my chest?'

He shrugged and then pulled out his phone. After typing in a few things, Dante managed to find an encrypted folder that was owned by the MBI. He scoffed as he easily created a profile on himself so the MBI could have a little bit of record.

It simply said:  
_Price, Dante  
Age: 17  
Home: New York City, New York  
DOB: 7/13/95  
Eye color: Brown  
Hair color: Black  
Height: 5' 8"  
Weight: 110 lbs_

Smiling to himself, he submitted and added a hidden message for the MBI to find.

Dante and Musubi found themselves walking along the road trying to find a place to live. While walking, he thought of the positives and negatives of the new world he had arrived in. For a positive he knew exactly were to go. An inn by the name Izumo Inn which was on the north side of town. He knew about the MBI and Minaka's little game in using Sekirei, who were aliens to his knowledge(though how amd when they got to Earth was beyond him), to fight against each other until there was one left standing. To put it into laymans terms, it was the immortals from Highlander if they were all girls and had special powers. Dante decided not tell Musubi of his knowing of the game, but would tell her of their new home. But before he opened his mouth, Musubi said, "Dante..."

"Yes?"

**GROWL**

He looked at her face in which her eyes were wide and watery.

"I'm hungry again."

_One hour later_

The two walked out of the restaurant with Dante just shaking his head in disbelief and a very happy Musubi.

"That was delicious!" The excitable girl said with a content and happy sigh. Suprsingly despite she was full, her belly was still slim and slender so no one could be able to tell that she had eaten.

"I'm glad you like it." Dante replied in a nervous chuckle. In all his travels he knew only three other people that could eat like that. Not to mention he met two of them when they were just kids. 'I pray that keeps her full enough until I can find that inn.' He thought to himself. Despite having $20,000 in cash, the hotel stay and the food only roughly knocked off $1,000 of what he had.

"Dante, since you took me out to lunch and made me breakfast, why don't you allow me to make you dinner tonight?" Musubi said, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Dinner?"

"Yeah, it will be great! I promise." She pumped her fists in the air with a large smile on her face.

Dante thought over her proposal. On the one hand, he wasn't sure how long he really wanted to be in this girls presence. She was making him feel strange, it wasn't necessarily a bad kind of strange, in fact it felt nice. In fact he liked it. Reminded him of when he and The Doctor first started out on there ventures. Also he couldn't help but smile at her childish antics. In fact that's another thing The Doctor said: 'There's no point in being grown up if you can't be childish sometimes.'

But this girl was the literal embodiment of that. With a light hearted chuckle he said, "Thank you, I would like that. But first things first, we need to get groceries."

"Ok!"

As the two continued to walk, Dante spotted two girls wearing maid outfits were in the middle of the sidewalk handing out free balloons and restaurant invitations. As he took another look at the two girls, he remembered where he met those two. And the girls recognized him, unfortunately.

"Hey! You're the guy that ran off with that Sekirei…" Said the girl in the blue maid outfit.

"Well glad to see you two again." Dante said replied scarasticly.

"This is the second day in a row that you ran into us." Said the purple maid girl.

"This city is pretty small, don't cha think?" The blue maid girl agreed.

"It's you two again!" Musubi said as she was about to run off.

"You're too slow!" The maid in blue fired a lightning attack from the sky, which dived down on Musubi. She yelled as she was struck by the lightning, damaging her and her clothes.

"Musubi!" Dante ran towards her, turned and looked at the two girls with a serious look in his eyes.

"We thought that you might have merged since you ran off with that guy yesterday…." The blue maid girl said.

"But it looks like it hasn't happened… Lucky us…" The purple maid girl said.  
Musubi was shocked that she was back in the same predicament before, facing the two girls who controlled electricity. She was about to charge them when Dante stepped in her path.

"Huh, Dante?"

He turned and gave her a mischievous grin. "I got this. Just leave it to me."

"Why would you protect her?" The purple maid girl asked as the two girls walked up to them. "It's not like you're her ashikabi."

"I protect her because it's my job. I'm inclined to protect to the innocent from people like you."

"Fine then, you wanna die?" The blue maid girl said as she and her sister began charging electricity. "Then so be it."

Dante rolled back his sleeve touched the Ultramtrix, popping up the dial.

"You two like playing with electricity, so let's see how you like it being used against you." He then slammed the dial down.

'My body… is acting strange…' Musubi thought as she began breathing heavily and blushing a lot when she felt more of Dante's words echoing throughout her body like strong soundwaves.

The two twins shieldied there eyes from the flashing light when it cleared saw him still the same. But somehow not. For one thing, they could sparks of electricity going up and down his arms and legs before they solidified into actually bolts of blue lightning.

"What are you?" The purple maid girl asked. "Are you a Sekirei?"

"No." He replied. "I'm just a kid from Brooklyn."

He rose his left hand and fire off a small ball of electricity at them. Both of the girls dodged, but the ball hit a metal pole behind them that was instantly electrified. They noticed this and frowned. His powers were at least on par with theirs, if not greater.

Both of hem charged on either side of him and tried to punch him, but he grabbed both their fists and stopped them dead. They both flexed against his hand, but they couldn't get away. The twins growled and punched at his head with their other hands, but he ducked backwards, pulling them forwards as he did. Instantly, he released both their hands and concentrated electricity into his palms, resulting in a small marble sized ball of light in each as he slammed his palms against their chests.

They both flew backwards and hit the wall behind them, making two small craters. Both twins pried themselves out and glared at Dante. He was too strong to take on with normal attacks. Time to go up a gear.

"You truely think you can defeat us?"

Dante gave them a bored look and held up a hand, set to snap his fingers.

"Much as I would love to talk, my friend and I must dash." He nodded his head towards them. "Also, you have something on your chests."

They both looked down to see the marble sized balls stuck there. They both looked up shocked as he smirked and said, "See ya." Then snapped his fingers.

Both the balls glowed brightly before they dissolved into several thick bolts of electricity that fired through both girls. They screamed in pain as their nerves were fried and their muscles spasmed. After here seconds, the bolts stopped and both girls fell to the ground, unable to move.

"Well that takes care of that." Dante said wiping his hands. He then turned his attention to Musubi who was on the ground panting and looking pretty ill. The girls face was beat red and she was breathing much more heavily then she should be.

"Ah cripes." He quickly picked her up and looked over his shoulder to see the twins starting to regan movement. Dante tensed his legs once again and took off like a bat out of hell. He ran towards the destined housing location which was still a far way out.

"Are you alright? You look like your burning up."

"I feel... I feel so hot," Musubi said, her breathing going heavy as she looked at him through half lidded eyes. She could feel her body responding to the blond in her arms, he was making her feel such heat, yet she didn't know why.

"Right, let's find some place where you can rest for now."

Looking around Dante made a quick detour into an alleyway. He knelt down and set Musubi on the ground. He frowned as he looked her over, pressing a hand to her forehead and eliciting a startled gasp from her.

'How odd, while she's burning up I can tell she not sick. But then the question remains, why is she so...'

"Dante..." Musubi fell into him, knocking the blond over and crawled on top of him until she was straddling his waist. Her panting had increased to the point where her breathing sounded harsh, as if she had run several thousand miles in less than a day. Her face was flushed a deep scarlet, her eyes were half-lidded, and her mouth was parted slightly as she stared at his lips. She moaned slightly when her crotch rubbed against his leg, and gave him a pleading look.

"Please... help me... I feel so hot. My body feels like it's burning. I've never felt this way before..."

All thoughts fled Dante's mind when Musubi placed her mouth over his. For a moment, all he could do was take in the feel of her soft lips as they pressed against his, it felt like a silk had been slipped over his mouth. Despite Dante's surprise, his hesitation only lasted for an instant before instincts kicked in and he began kissing back. It had not been so long since he had been with a women that he didn't know what do in this kind of situation. He applied more pressure against Musubi's soft and warm lips. His hands moved from behind him and holding him up to her waist.

He fell onto his back, taking Musubi with him as they continued to kiss. He felt her energy flare dramatically and almost pulled back with a start when it latched onto his own signature. The only reason he didn't was because of his gut instincts. Whatever was happening, Dante could feel it wasn't hurting him in any way. Instead he focused some of his attention on what was happening to his energy, and came to a startling conclusion when he felt his regeneration energy began merging with hers.

Musubi began glowing a light purple, the chakra forming around her in prism like rays of light. A symbol appeared on her back and began to project itself outwards in a physical manifestation of energy. The symbol was of a bird with a yin and yang circle under it and two tomoes on either side, making that four total. With the the yin and yang crest they formed a U with the tomoes under the bird. From the projected symbol ten wings spread out from her back, large, brilliant rays of light that shone in the cast aside the darkness of the alley so totally all anyone would see if they were to look was white.

They pushed against the confined walls of the small alley they were in, actually cracking the cement they were struggling against. Eventually, as if decided that the battle against the cement walls was pointless, the wings folded in on themselves to engulf him and Musubi in a protective embrace.

The light soon began to fade, the wings disappeared, the symbol made from energy vanished, and all that was left were Dante and Musubi, still kissing in the alley. When they broke the kiss Musubi's and Dnate's eyes fluttered open and they stared at each other. His left hand came over and cupped the brunette's face in wonder, causing the girl to instinctively lean into his touch.

"What just happened?" asked Dante, confused.

Musubi closed her eyes as she smiled at him in an expression that radiated sheer joy. "You've just become my Ashikabi."

_Meanwhile_

"I can't... believe... we lost them..." one of the girls huffed. The two of them were currently on their knees as they tried to regain their breath and strength. Both had continued chasing after the strange human that had somehow just blasted them faster then either of them had ever thought possible. The pair had been stunned by the man's speed, enough to give up the chase.

"Shut up... Hikari..." the other one panted. "I just... want to know how a mere... mere human can move so fast..."

"Who cares?" growled Hikari, finally regaining her breath. "Now that we've lost her again who knows how long it will take us to find her."

"It wouldn't matter even if you two did find her." A voice said behind them. Both of the female Sekirei whirled around to find themselves staring at a masked man with shock white hair and outfitted with a black coat and face mask.

"Homura!" Hikari growled, a fierce scowl lighting her face. "What do you want?"

"I just thought it would be a good idea to inform you that the girl now has an Ashikabi."

"Then... that boy winged her?" Hibiki asked in slight surprise, before releasing an angry growl.

"Damn it! We had been so close this time!" The girl should have been easy pickings, aside from being only a recently released Sekirei, she was also of a higher number and therefore had less power than they did. They had chased the girl all throughout the city. Not surprising, number eighty eight had been faster than they were, being a physical type of Sekirei, but they were sure that she would have run out of juice eventually, all they would have had to do was keep chasing her.

And they would have gotten her too, if it weren't for that brat who electrocuted them.

"And you!" The more easily aggravated of the two continued as she pointed an angry finger at the black suited Sekirei. "You were watching us the whole time, weren't you?"

"It is my job to be the guardian for unwinged Sekirei," Homura replied in a nonchalant tone that pissed Hikari off. She had never liked this guy or his self righteous attitude. "You should know that by now. Perhaps I should teach you two a lesson."

"If it's a fight your looking for Homura then I'll give it to you!" the twin with the larger bust size shouted.

"Are you mad, Hibiki!?" Hikari hissed as she grabbed her sisters arm. "Do you remember what happened the last time we fought him?" Despite herself Hibiki gulped as flames encased the white haired Sekirei's hand.

"You're lucky that girl found her Ashikabi, as I have no interest in fights between winged Sekirei. So I'll let you off, for now." Homura said as the flames dispersed and he began walking away.

The two twins looked at each other as the white haired male left, both giving an internal sigh of relief.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3 **

After getting the groceries they needed, Dante decided it'd be wise to stay at the hotel for one more night before going to their destined location. He now found himself seated at the table, which he had to literally sit on the ground to be at, waiting for dinner which Musubi had insisted on making. Also he was currently looking at his phone going through calculations and solving problems he didn't have the chance to do while traveling. The reasons being is that one, he didn't have anything much else to do and even if wanted to he couldn't whip out his armor for a check. Secondly is because Musubi was wearing nothing but more than a pair of panties and one of his shirts.

"Dinner will be ready in just a little while." She informed him before going back to her cooking.

"Alright," Dante said in acknowledgment. "Thank you for doing this by the way."

"Oh don't worry about it, Dante," Musubi looked over her shoulder and smiled at him. "You're my Ashikabi. I'm more then happy to do this for you."

Dante smiled at this. For you see this was the first time anybody had done anything for him. He was the one normally meeting people and helping them out of situations. So this was a sort of a novelty experience. Just then Dante's cell phone began ringing. Pulling out his phone, he looked at the caller ID which had the words: MBI. He sighed and slid the accept button. The screen blanked before the image of Minako appeared on it. Before the man could even open his mouth, Dante said, "Hello Minaka Hiroto, head director of the MBI and game master of the Sekirei Plan."

This stopped the white haired man right in his tracks as he stuttered out, "H-how...?"

"Quite simple really. Hacked your company's systems as soon as I arrived in the city. Pretty easy really. And no I won't be telling you how I did it, it'd take the fun out of the game wouldn't it?"

A slight grin formed on Minaka's face. "Yes it would. Now I would-"

"Like to congratulate me on becoming an Ashikabi to a Sekirei? Don't bother. I think two of them already threw the party."

Again Minaka fell dumbstruck. "H-hey! Now, listen here! I just want to-"

"Go over the rules? Gladly. Now that I'm an Ashikabi, I've become part of a grand game. An epic competition and struggle between Sekirei who must battle in secret in order to stay with their Ashikabi. Which ever ashikabi and Sekirei who wins will get a "fabulous prize" and shall be allowed to ascend to the higher skies above together and usher in a new "Age of the Gods". Are you still listening?"

Minaka fell silent as he did what Dante would call the "Picard face palm". The director nodded his head.

"Good. Since the Sekirei Plan is a highly confidential secret project, if I attempt to inform anyone of it, then I'll be dealt with harshly. Do I stand correct sir?"

Again, Minaka nodded.

"Very good. Now I suggest you send one of your goons to send more clothes for Musubi. And as for you..."

The MBI director flinched at this.

"You be a good boy and run along and play with your toys. I will be calling again, so be on the ready."

And with that, Dante ended the call.

"Who was that you were talking to Dante?" Musubi asked sticking her head out of the kitchen.

"Oh just the Professor."

"The Professor? Is he still there?"

"No, he hung up. But he did say he'll send some extra clothing."

"Oh, good. My last pair did get a bit shredded."

'A bit? More like showing your birthday suit to the whole world.' Dante thought, but didn't say aloud.

He then put a fist under chin, and started pondering. The talk with Minaka was the equivalent of poking a bee hive. A few bees come out, but not all call to arms. Musubi came in with two plates filled with a ton of curry on both. She set them down, said the traditional blessing, and dug in. Dante did the same and started eating his share of food. Surprisingly it was really good. So good in fact he started shovling it down his gullet and ended up almost choking. After the two were done, Dante took the plates into the kitchen and started washing them despite Musubi's protest she let him do it. Eventually he decided to let her dry and put them away.

"So, tell me Musubi, what do you know about the Sekirei Plan?"

"Not much." She said cheerfully. "I know that Sekirei are supposed to find their Ashikabi, then fight any other Sekirei they find until they're the last ones standing."

"Are there any rules?" He asked as they finished the dishes and went back to the table to talk.

The fist type Sekirei put a finger on her chin. "The only rule that I remember is that Ashikabi's can't interfere. But that's hardly the case except..."

Dante raised an eyebrow. "Except me?"

"Yes. Also..."

Musubi then jumped over the table and toppled Dante over, eyes twinkling as she asked, "How did you use those powers before? Those were so cool!"

Dante tried to think how to respond, but it was difficult thinking with the girl currently wearing very little and her body was pressing against his.

"I-I'll explain, but uh, first could please you get off of me?"

The excitable Sekirei did as he asked and sat back at her side of the table.

"Thank you. Now where do I start?" Dante asked after picking himself up.

"What was the small balls you used to shock those two chasing me?"

"Ah. Well, those were balls of condensed and supercharged electricity I made using some powers I got from a friend, name Cole McGrath."

"Was he a Sekieri?"

"No, but close. He was what was called a Conduit. They were, uh... People with...unique genetic codes. Now most of them were normal, just average citizens, unless they came into contact with something called a Ray Sphere. They were advanced technology, that drained nuroelectric energy, and concentrated it into a single individual. Most people would be fried by something like that, except, for Conduits."

Musubi was enthralled by Dante's explanation, which intrested him. Most people didn't look pleased when he explained this, but considering she wasn't quite normal, he didn't think much of it.

"Conduits absorbed the energy and the conduit gene inside them would activate, giving them powers. Some had flame powers, other things like telekenises, ice manipulation, and Cole got electricity."

"Cool! What happened to them?" Musubi asked, excited to fight people like this.

Dante's eyes went flat, as did his tone. "Dead. They all died out due to an accident. The only reason I survived was because I wasn't there when it happened."

Musubi paused before asking confused, "But how do you have the powers then?"  
Dante was snapped from his gloom and blinked. "I was friends with Cole before he died. I asked him if I could have a small sample of his blood for study and he agreed. I cracked the genetic codes and, again with his permission, transferred them to myself, through this."

He rolled up his sleeve and showed her the Ultramatrix again.

"This device let's me copy powers so long as they use some form of energy or genetic material. I scan them, copy the information, then I can use them whenever and wherever I choose."

"But how did the electricity hurt them if they use electricity?"

He rolled his sleeve back up and looked down to the floor.

"Because I used another ability that would make it hurt them."

"What is it?"

Dante stayed silent for a good few minutes before taking a deep breath. "Another electric power, though this one is not one I'm entirely proud was Sith lighting. This type of lighting is only used by a force known throughout a certain galaxy as the bringers of death and destruction. I was one of them. They taught me things I dare not talk about and forced me to take innocent lives."

Musubi was confused now. Dante kept talking in light and fun tones before jumping into one where he was quite and depressed. Which was his real face? And which one did he have to force?

"Sorry for dumping all this on you. Guess you didn't get the best Ashikabi." He said quietly, starting to stand up.

"No."

Dante paused at the firm voice and looked up. Musubi was looking at him with hardened determination, so unlike how she had been a moment ago he was stunned.

"Sorry?"

"You're not a bad Ashikabi. You are far from it."

Dante snorted softly and looked away. "That's just because you don't know me. What I've done, where I've been. What I still have to do."

He felt a hand on his cheek then before his head was forced around until he was looking Musubi in the eyes.

It was in her eyes that he saw determination, dedication, compassion, will, hope and love. Musubi on the other hand saw something different. She saw aged eyes. Old aged eyes that have seen things that were beyond anyone's years. But this did not phase her.

"I don't care. I knew when I bonded with you, you cared. I felt compassion, hope, love, everything a Sekirei could ever want from their Ashikabi."

Her eyes softened. "But I also felt pain. Grief. Longing for love. And blaming yourself for things beyond your control."

Dante tried to turn his head again, but Musubi held his head in both hands, preventing him from moving.

"You can't blame yourself. You need to let go."

He finally looked her in the eye, his own eyes looking slightly moist as he whispered, "I can't."

"Yes you can. If you let me in." She didn't give him a chance to respond as she kissed him.

He breathed in deeply in surprise before he relaxed and kissed back, enjoying the feel of her lips on his and her taste, sweet with just a hint of some spice, neither noticing or caring as her mark began to glow and her wings to expanded out from her back. He put his arms around her waist and pulled her close until Musubi needed to breath and broke off the kiss, her wings fading as she did. They stood close toghther, Musubi panting while Dante was only slightly winded due to his diffrent biology. They looked at each other, sinking into each other's eyes.

Dante felt a nudge in his mind, small at first, then growing stronger and stronger, slipping through his mental defenses with ease. He didn't panic since he felt only positive emotions from the entity, love, happiness, determination, peace. And he knew they were coming from Musubi.

Then a knock at the door pulled Dante out of his thoughts. He walked over and opened the door to see a large man in a black suit with an MBI badge on his collar.

"Ah good, you're here." He then took the box and then slipped something into the man's pocket. The man looked at his pocket then back to Dante who gave him a nod. After he closed the door, Dante said, "I believe these are yours Musubi," handing her the box.

Musubi took the box and opened it, then smiled happily as she saw the contents. "Oh, they brought me my clothes!"

She then procceded to start stripping what little clothes she had right in front of him. Now despite being over hundreds of years old, he still was a hot blooded hertosexual male. He turned around and found more interest in a plant that was in the corner. After a few minutes he turned around to see Musubi fully clothed.

"Musubi."

"Hm?"

"This might sound odd, but I haven't had anybody to call a friend, or even a remote acquaintance for... a long time. Yet in the span of a single day, you've managed to somehow become important to me. I don't want to see you hurt."

"Dante," Musubi took one of his hands with a smile on her face. "I'm so happy to know you care about me so much. I knew I picked right when I chose you to be my Ashikabi."

"Musubi..."

"However, you don't need to worry about me." She continued with a soft smile on her face. "I will fight for you, I want to fight for you. And then you and I will ascend into the higher skies above together."

Dante let out a long sigh. "If that's the case, if you really want to fight, then I will also fight with you."

"You don't have to," Musubi started, shaking her head against his shoulder. "I can fight for the both of us."

"But I want to."

"If we are partners, then that means we're a team. I won't let you fight alone, and I will do all in my power to protect you."

Musubi's eyes got big and watery, giving her an almost comical appearance. "Your such a great person, Dante."

"I don't know about being a great person," He said sadly. "However, I will always protect the people close to me."

After saying this Dante let out a long and tired yawn.

"Well I don't know about you, but I'm ready for bed."

"Really? I don't feel *yawn* tired?" Musubi yawned while rubbing her eyes.

Dante chucked. "Well let's get to bed, shall we?"

The two got into pajamas, or for Musubi's case wearing a large shirt Dante had, and laid out their futons. They laid down as Musubi said, "Oh, I forgot to turn off the light."

"Gotcha covered." Dante then pulled out his sonic screwdriver and pointed it toward the light and activated. The lights went out as Musubi started, "Dante, who did you-?"

"I'll tell you in the morning. Good night Musubi."

"Oh ok. Good night Dante."

And with that, the Timelord hybrid Ashikabi and his Sekirei fell asleep.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

_Dante was treading across a frozen terrain with his hands in his pant pockets and the sun shining on the ground. Surprisingly it wasn't cold, in fact it didn't feel like anything. He continued walking until he caught glimpse of a faint outline that was a few feet ahead of him in the ice. Dante walked forward only for it to grow further and further away. Feeling really frustrated, he went into an all out sprint as he managed to catch up to it to see a familiar symbol. It was the Sekirei symbol, only it looked broken and in disrepair. Suddenly it vanished as Dante stopped to see a park bench. He was about to go closer when a dark shadow loomed over him and a booming voice said, __**"She'll be an excellent addition to my collection."**_

He shot up panting and in a cold sweat as he tried to regain his senses. Dante looked around to get his bearings.

'Good. Still in the hotel,' He then looked over at the clock, '5:30 in the morning. Ok. But why does my left arm feel heavy and numb?'

Dante looked at his arm to see Musubi holding onto it tightly as she mumbled in her sleep about bears or something. Shaking his head, he laid back down and pondered his dream.

'No way she could be reacting to me. She's a broken number, so how...?' It then hit him and he hit his forehead. 'Of course! I forgot about that. Ever since the Jedi training from Luke, I've been able to stretch my mind across whole cities, even galaxies. I guess I'm reacting to her and not the other way around. Does that make any sense? No I suppose it doesn't. But I am awake and she'll need my help. I guess we're checking out early.'

With that, he pried his arm free from the burnette's grasp and got out of his futon. He took a quick bath, and brushed his teeth. After putting on a pair of fresh clothes, Dante decided to make breakfast with what remaining groceries they had. Dante laid the food on the table and began to eat as Musubi entered the room rubbing her eyes and growling stomach. He gave a smile to his Sekirei as he said, "Good morning Musubi. I believe you slept well?"

"I did." She said in a tired voice. "So hungry."

Dante chuckled and waved his hand to her plate. As soon as her eyes laid sights on it, Musubi immediately began wolfing down her food. The teen just shook his head in amusement as he finished his meal. Just as Musubi finished her meal, he took her plate and laid her clothes out.

"We need to leave soon." Dante said placing the remaining dishes in their correct cabinets.

"Huh? Why?"

"We still need to find the place where going to stay at. So get changed and we'll be there as soon as possible."

"Ok!" Musubi said with a beaming smile.

He just shook his head again at her innocent antics and decided to get himself ready as he placed his shoes on. Ten minutes later, the two checked out of the hotel and were walking towards the north part of town. They walked for about a half hour until they were outside a building he recognized. It was a two stories set up in traditional Japanese style, but there was a small entrance to the right of it. There was a fence around a yard in front of the two story part of the building. Over all, it looked rather average, but Dante knew this place was perfect for what they needed. The two walked towards the door as Dante placed his bag down and knocked on the door four times. They heard the light sound of footsteps before the door opened.

He then found a sudden boulder in his throat and that temperature seemed to skyrocket as he looked at the owner of the house. Standing before him was a woman in her late twenties with waist length, straight purple hair, dark purple colored eyes, and fair skin. She had a traditional priestess outfit, with a white top and purple leggings only a few shades darker than her hair.

Her eyes looked over them for a handful of seconds, in what most people would think would be idle curiosity, but Dante had fought for hundreds of years and he knew the look in her eyes was her calculating if they were a threat or not. After a second though, that look was gone and the woman was smiling pleasantly.

"Hello. Can I help you?"

"We're looking for a place to live!" Musubi cheered before Dante could open declared happily. He chuckled at her antics and decided to explain.

"Hello. I'm Dante Price, and this is my..." What to call her? He couldn't say Musubi was his Sekreki, even if the person in front of him knew that.

"...girlfriend Musubi. We were kicked out of our apartment and currently looking for another place to live. We noticed this place had open rooms and were wondering if we could move in."

The woman smiled wider. "Well, aren't you a polite young man? My name is Miya, I'm the landlady."

"A pleasure." Dante smiled, bowing his head. "So would we be able to move in then?"

"Well, I do have a few rules if you intend to. First one, I don't tolerate any violence. Second, no offensive language. And finally, no sexual or inappropriate behavior while staying here."

Dante nodded. "I understand. And how much is the rent?"

"70 dollars a month."

He was suprised and he said so. "I'm surprised. Such a nice place like this, I was sure the rent would be much higher."

"Not quite. My late husband belived in never turning away those in need." Miya said, smiling sadly.

"I'm sorry."

"It's no concern. Would you like to see your room if you plan on staying here?"

"Yes please."

Miya moved aside as Dante moved in, Musubi litterly bouncing behind him. They were led to their room which was larger then Dante had anticipated it to be. The room was set up rather plain, white walls with a closer and a small table in the center. Scanning the room, he mumbled, "Not to big, not too small. With a few modifications I could-"

"So how do you like it?"

Dante was pulled out if thought as he looked at Miya and replied, "Hm? Ah, it's very nice, lots of space. I think we'll be able to call this home. Don't you agree Musubi?"

The burnette nodded. Just then Musubi began sniffing as she caught the smell of a delectable scent. "What's that smell?" she asked, her mouth beginning to water.

Miya giggled. "I hope it's not terrible because I'm cooking dinner. In fact, you two are just in time because it will be done in just a few minutes." Almost as if in hearing the woman's words, Musubi's stomach let out it's earth rumbling growl, causing Dante to rub the back of his head Miya to giggle some more.

_A few minutes later_

"Thank you very much!"

Musubi stuck the first piece in her mouth, chewed it, and then swallowed. There was a slight pause as the girl in shrine maiden clothing seemed to be making an attempt at determining whether she liked the food or not. A moment later, it was clear that she did when a large smile came to her face while tears streamed down her eyes.

"This... this is so good!"

Dante, Miya and the white haired man sitting with them all looked at the girl with various reactions as she took her first bite of food. Dante merely shook his head, already used to the antics of his Sekirei. To his left, Miya hid her smiling mouth gracefully behind her kimono sleeve and giggled. Kagari just raised an eyebrow, only sparing the girl a brief moment of his attention before beginning to eat again.

As Musbi began eating more she absently spoke up again. "Ah! It's so delicious! This is one of the best meals ever!"

"Don't speak with your mouth full," Miya chided the girl as she used her chopsticks to take some food into her own mouth.

Musubi looked abashed, but didn't slow down the pace of her eating. She did stop once, however, just enough to say, "Sorry," before she went back to her food.

"Aw, is it even better then mine, Musubi?" asked Dante, sticking his lips up in a pout as his eyes began to quiver. Musubi looked up at him inquiringly, her eyes blinking as her mind began registering his words. After a second or two she seemed to realize what he had said, and her eyes widened as she began waving her hands back and forth in a defensive manner as she tried to reassure him that his food was better than Miya's.

"No! Of course not! Dante's cooking is the best, because Dante's the one who made it for Musubi," Musubi said. She placed her hands over her heart and nodded. "Anything made by you, will always be Musubi's favorite. When I eat your cooking it's almost like I can feel your love in it, and that is what makes your cooking so wonderful."

Dante's cheeks colored as he turned his head. "I-I was only kidding," he said, scratching his cheek with an index finger. Musubi blinked several times as she tilted her head and looked at him curiously, while Miya covered her mouth with her hand and giggled. As the he looked away from Musubi's intensely sincere stare, his eyes caught sight of the other occupant sitting with them. A young man that Dante felt was a perfectly matched description of a pretty boy. He had messy white hair, brown eyes, and that really lithe body type that most pretty boys had.

"Can I help you?" asked the man with a raised eyebrow.

"I don't think we were introduced yet. I'm Dante Price"

"And I'm number eighty eight, Musubi!" said the brunette Sekirei. "It's a pleasure to meet you!"

Dante had to force himself not to face palm.

The white haired man chuckled a little, seemingly unbothered by the naïve Sekirei's words. "I'm Kagari, nice to meet you two."

Just then the sound of footsteps came from down the hall and a voice whined, "Ah, I'm so hungry." Dante looked up with everyone else to see yet another well-endowed young woman with long, dark brown hair. She had a pony tail on the left side of her hair and let the rest fall down behind her back. She had brown eyes eyes and like every other girl Dante had met so far had a very developed figure.

She was also only wearing a pair of panties and a frilly pink shirt that showed off a lot of cleavage and had a small purple bow tied to the front.

"Oh, we have visitors," the woman said, looking at Dante and Musubi.

"Uzume, how many times have I told you not to come out of your room dressed like that?" asked Kagari.

"Well, at least I'm in panties now," Uzume countered in a way that said she really didn't care if anyone saw her naked. She walked further in and sat down next to Kagari, where she began eating.

"Actually, Musubi and I aren't visitors," Dante said, causing Uzume to look up from her meal to stare at him. "We're your new housemates. I'm Dante, and that's Musubi."

"Oh, a pleasure to meet you two then," Uzume said with a smile. "You'll find that this is a pretty nice place. The only problem is that this place is kind of beat up and worn down, which means only crazies and weirdos live here." She gave the two new tenants a wink. "So we're always looking for more normal tenants."

"Oh really?" asked Miya as an odd sense of dread and death filled the air. Dante was almost positive he saw purple energy being emitted from the pleasantly smiling woman as she looked at Uzume who had begun to sweat under the woman's sweet yet dangerous smile.

"Uwah! Yeah, I mean, because this place has so much character we need a variety of types." Uzume corrected herself hastily. The feeling of dread vanished from the air and the brunette breathed a sigh of relief.

"Meh, normal is highly overrated in my opinion," Dante said with a grin. Everyone looked over at him but he just shrugged. "Normal people are boring, they have no sense of fun and they're all the same. I shudder to think what this world would be like if every one were normal. Come to think of it, can someone even be considered normal? I mean, every one is different from each other, right? So the concept of normal doesn't really exist, because there's simply no basis to categorize someone as normal. And being grown up is no fun either. What's the point in being grown up if you can't be childish sometimes."

The rest of the people in the room looked at the blond like he had grown a second head. Musubi was looking at him curiously while scratching the back of her head in confusion, Kagari had raised an eyebrow, and Uzume just looked plain lost. The only person who wasn't confused and/or consternated was Miya.

"I agree with you," she said with a giggle. "Things wouldn't be as interesting if we didn't have so many different people in this world. And maybe it wouldn't hurt if we acted like a child now and then."

"I'm glad to see someone understands me," Dante chuckled.

Dinner passed uneventfully after initial introductions were made. Conversation was sparse and erratic, with Dante asking his new housemates some basic questions about themselves and answering them in turn, Dante answering most of them while Musubi was too busy trying to fill her black hole of a stomach.

"So you're a traveler?" asked Uzume as he told her and the others a little about himself. She seemed to be the most interested in learning more about him. Though Musubi was also paying close attention whenever the blond spoke about himself.

"You could say that." Dante replied. "You name it, I've most likely been there."

"That's really cool. That sounds like..." She cut herself off and seemed to look out at the distance. Dante noticed but didn't press it as she finished in an unconvincing tone, "Someone I know."

Here was where Kagari decided to interupt. "So, Dante, how long have you been in town?"

"Not long. A few days. But I have to say, it's been...interesting, to say the least." He smirked.

"How so?"

"Well, made some new friends, met Musubi, then all of you."

"You just met Musubi a few days ago?" Uzume asked, surprised.

"Yep."

"And she's your girlfriend?"

"Si."

Uzume had a twinkle in her eye as the corner of her lips curled into a smirk. "You work fast, bro."

Not being flustered, Dante decided to jab back.

"What can I say? When you've got it, you've got it." He answered back with a small wink at her, getting Uzume's mouth to drop open in shock before she laughed.

"Wow, I didn't know anybody could get back at Uzume so easily." Kagari snorted in amusement, Miya smiling and nodding in agreement.

"So, what do you two plan to do for the rest of the day?" Miya asked Dante pleasantly.

"Well we planned on doing some shopping, getting some things to make our room more comfortable."

"What do you plan on getting?"

"Some furniture and clothes, a few other things, nothing fancy."

"Can you pay for it?" Uzume asked in a concerned tone. "If you just got in town, you wouldn't have a job would you?"

Dante shrugged. "I had a rich uncle. He left me quite an exponential amount of money."

"Really? Interesting." Miya noted, but didn't peruse the subject as dinner ended that night with them finishing up and going to bed.

_The next day_

"Ah! Check out this couch, Dante! It's so comfy!" Musubi shouted excitedly from where she was sitting on the couch. She and Dante had left early after breakfast to go shopping for accessories to make their room more comfortable.

So far they had gone to several stores and looked at things they felt they might need in their room. Dante shook his head with an easy going smile on his face. Moving over to the love seat he sat down on it with her. Almost as soon as he sat down, his body sank into the plushy covering. "It is pretty nice," he agreed. "Do you want us to get this?"

"Can we?" asked Musubi, her eyes looking hopefully wide as she held he clasped her hands in front of her face. "Can we really?"

"If you want it," Dante said. The smile that had been plastered onto his face since they left turned sly. "Though do keep in mind that we only have about twenty-five square feet of space available to us. Perhaps it would be best if we kept this seat in mind but continue shopping before we decide. You may find something else that serves the same function that you like more."

"Ok!" Musubi said, not having a problem with that. Even to her childish thoughts, his words made sense.

The pair continued walking through the store, with Musubi trying out every chair, couch and otherwise sittable piece of furniture they ran across. Thankfully she knew the difference between a couch and a dresser and thus, he didn't have to worry about her trying to sit on something that simply wasn't meant for sitting.

He did entertain the image of her doing that, however, and it was rather amusing to say the least.

Throughout the entire experience, Dante found more strange feelings that he hadn't known himself to possess. This entire situation was one he had never been in before. Not just the shopping for household items with a female that he was now living with, but the shopping in general. Odd as it may seem, Dante had never shopped for things like furniture and household appliances. He had never needed to since the TARDIS provided anything he needed, something he was grateful for but didn't take for granted. But the bigger point was he never stayed anywhere very long.

In the end, it had come down to a simply question to which the answer had been obvious. Why bother buying appliances like a couch and furniture when you weren't going to be living in any one place for more than a year or two?

Trip down memory lane aside, the shopping trip had, contrary to what some people might have thought, turned out to be not only an eventful time, but also very fun. Musubi, put so much enthusiasm into everything she did that Dante couldn't help but smile and laugh along with her as she enjoyed herself. The girl truly was a breath of fresh air to someone like him, whose eyes had become jaded to the world and everything in it. Even having just met, Musubi had already brought more positive emotions into his life than anything he had seen, done, or met within the past few hundred years.

The shopping excursion itself lasted around two hours all told. In the end, they ended up buying a love seat of a different make that the short-haired brunette Sekirei decided she liked better. That wasn't the only thing they had bought, however, as Dante ended up getting a small but high quality desk with several drawers on either side for files, a slotted board above the ground on the bottom where a computer would go, slide out keyboard table, and a place where he could set a printer if he wanted to, all of it painted in a glossy black color. Along with that, he bought a comfortable wheeled leather computer chair to go along with the desk. He planned on buying an actual computer later on so he didn't just use his laptop all the time.

In return, he let Musubi pick out the rest of the appliances they would have in their room. She had been ecstatic and ended up getting several lamps, brushed steel gooseneck torchiere floorlamps; a couple of fake potted plants, light blue curtains for the windows, and a dresser drawer made out of an exotic dark wood with a varnished finish.

By the time the pair had finished shopping they must have been an odd sight. Dante was carrying the loveseat above his head, using only a single hand. On top of it was the computer chair, and under his other arm was the box containing the desk. Musubi on the other hand was carrying the table over her head, on top of it was the box with the drawer in it and the plants, and had the lamps under the arm she wasn't using to hold up the table.

Dante noticed the looks of shock and disbelief they were receiving and sighed, thankful that if nothing else, the desk and drawer were unmade in their boxes. Not only would the added dimension make all the items they bought infinitely harder to carry, it would have drawn even more attention then they did now.

'So much for remaining inconspicuous,' he thought to himself. He looked over at Musubi and smiled. 'Still, I can't find it in myself to really complain.'

Musubi didn't even notice the looks they received as they walked back home, or she did and just didn't understand. The latter case was more likely because her eyes were roving over the city as if it was the first time they had seen it. As her eyes continued moving, they landed on the glass window with a display in the front of the store. To be more specific, they landed on the television set they were advertising in the front window.

"Ah! A TV," she said, stopping in front of the display to look at the flat screen television. Had she not been carrying several hundred pounds of furniture, it was more then likely that she would have pressed her face against the glass like a kid looking into a candy store.

Dante stopped as well when he noticed Musubi was no longer following him. Looking back he saw that she was staring at the TV, which he could hear was giving more news on the unnatural plant growth in the Botanical Garden. This peaked his interest, but he put it aside for now. He chuckled as he walked back over to her, "I take it you like watching TV?"

"Yes." Musubi said enthusiastically, her head bobbing up and down in an exaggerated manner. "I love watching TV, I can learn of all the things that happen in the outside world from it."

"Outside world?" Dante said in a questioning tone. The way she said that, so matter of factly, bothered him. The words themselves sounded somewhat ominous, they were the kinds of words he would expect a prisoner to use to describe the world beyond his cell. For some reason, the term 'caged bird' came to his mind, but he banished the thought before it could take hold, and instead focused his attention on his Sekirei.

How appropriate was it that the word Sekirei was Japanese for a type of bird called a Wagtail?

"I mean the world that you live in," she said, her eyes moving from the television to him. She smiled that smile that only she could. For some reason, it unnerved Dante right now, rather than soothed him like it normally did. "We were born on an island where we were adjusted."

Dante's eyes narrowed. When Musubi used the term adjusted, his mind couldn't help but conjure up the image of the young woman before him, strapped to a table as faceless people in lab coats experimented on her. He would have blamed it on playing too many video games and watching too much tv, but he was far too busy dealing with the white hot rage that surged through his body at the thought of someone 'adjusting' Musubi. Thankfully, he had a lot of experience when it came to masking his emotions, and thus managed to keep the anger out of his voice as he asked, "What exactly do you mean by adjusted?"

"Newborn Sekireis can't adjust to the outside world and can't control their powers," Musubi explained in a matter of fact tone. It almost sounded like she was giving a lecture, a thought which actually forced Dante's anger away as he gave a tiny snort of amusement. He was glad that Musubi hadn't heard him as she continued talking. "An example would be every time we hugged. If I couldn't control myself, you would have been turned into a pancake by now."

The hybrid relaxed a little, though the thought of someone 'adjusting' as Musubi called it, another person sickened him, her explanation had gone a long way to soothing his nerves. He still didn't like the thought, but it sounded to him like the Sekirei's adjustments were necessary in order to allow them to fit into human society. He had no doubt that an unadjusted Musubi really would have turned any human but himself into a pancake if she hugged them.

Then his mind recalled her last statement and he gave a snort of amusement. "I'm a lot stronger then I look, Musubi. You know that." In emphasis, he tossed the loveseat a few inches above his hand and caught it again with ease to emphasis that fact. He winked at the girl and said, "I think I could have withstood your hugs just fine even if you couldn't control your powers."

Musubi giggled a little. "Well, maybe you could have, but most people wouldn't be able to survive a hug given by me if I couldn't control my power."

"So where is this island that your talking about?" asked Dante innocuously enough. A part of his mind was already making plans to infiltrate the island so that he could learn as much as possible about Sekireis. Right now, he only knew the basics, and while that was fine for right now, if he wanted to plan his actions appropriately, he would need to know more about what he had gotten himself into.

"It's an island called Kamigura, and it's a secret of MBI. It's not even on the map either." Her eyes widened and she would have pressed a hand to her mouth were it not for the fact that she was carrying several hundred pounds worth of furniture. "Oops! I wasn't supposed to say anything about that."

"So basically no one but the higher ups likely knows where this island is." Dante said with a sigh. Looks like he had a lot of work ahead of him. And a lot of tinkering. "So do you want to buy this TV as well?"

Musubi eyes went wide as she squealed in delight. "Aah! Can I really?"

"Of course, but you'll be carrying that one."

"Yatta!"

_Later on_

They arrived at the Izumo Inn around two hours later. Stopping at the front door Dante raised his free hand and knocked on it exactly three times. He waited for Miya or one of the other residents to answer the door, listening as Musubi shuffled impatiently behind him. It seemed she was eager to start decorating the room.

The door was soon answered, not by Miya, but by the other female residence. Uzume was standing in the doorway, wearing a pair of form fitting jeans that cut off at the knees and hugged her shapely hips like a second skin, and a tight fitting purple shirt with a yellow star in the center of her chest. The shirt was very stretched as it expanded across her bust, it looked almost like it might rip at the seems. Equally clear was the fact that she was not wearing a bra of any kind. Her outfit was finished with a basic pair of sandals.

She blinked at them, a dumb expression on her face as her eyes went from Musubi and the large stack of furniture she was carrying, to Dante and his equally large stack of furniture. After a few moments of her standing there looking like a lemon, she seemed to snap back into reality.

"Wow," she whistled as she glanced at the pair, though her eyes lingered thoughtfully on Dante longer than they did Musubi. "You two are pretty strong aint'cha?"

"Of course!" Musubi cheered, and Dante was sure that if it were not for the fact that she was carrying so many supplies she would have pumped her fist into the air. "That's because I'm a –"

"Musubi," Dante cut the air headed Sekirei off before she could incriminate herself as a Sekirei and thus reveal her existence to someone who didn't know about the Sekirei Plan. Musubi looked at him curiously, her head tilting to the left as she tried to understand why he had cut her off. It took her several seconds, and a lot of non verbal cues that she couldn't understand, before she realized just why her Ashikabi had cut her off. Her eyes widened before, less then a second later, she giggled.

"Woops, sorry Dante. I almost forgot that you told Musubi to be discreet." She knuckled the side of her head and stuck her tongue out. "Te he!"

"Te he, she says," He sighed and resisted the urge to face palm. His Sekirei seemed to take the term 'loose lips sinks ship' to a whole new, other galaxy level.

Uzume looked back and forth between the pair for a while longer, then shook her head and grinned. "So is all this stuff for your room?" she asked in an attempt to make conversation. At the same time she moved out of the way and held the door open so that Dante and Musubi could enter the boarding house.

"Yep," Dante said as he made his way inside. It took a bit of work, because he was carrying the items he had bought over his head, he needed to stoop slightly and bent his arm at a forty five degree angle so it wouldn't smack against the wall above the doorway. "We don't have any furniture or anything for the room, so we decided to get some."

"I got'cha," Uzume was nodding as she walked backwards in front of the pair, her hands clasped behind her back. "You know, I think I'm beginning to like you."

"Well," Dante rolled his eyes. "I'm glad to know how you feel about me. It really warms me to hear you say such things."

Uzume's grin widened as she nodded her head once. "As you should, it's not everyday someone finds themselves in my favor."

Dante stifled a laugh before deciding to switch topics. "I didn't see you for breakfast this morning. Were you out late last night again?"

"Ah, ah ha, yeah I was," Uzume rubbed the back of her head and laughed loudly. Dante frowned, both the smile on her face and her laugh sounded forced. He would have asked her about it, but didn't want to be rude. It hadn't even been a full day since he had moved in, and while Uzume was an extremely likeable person, and he was sure from their interaction just now that they would get on famously, it didn't change the fact that he hardly knew her. It simply wouldn't be right to intrude on her private life.

Perhaps when they actually became friends he would ask her if there was something wrong.

"I didn't get in until, like, two this morning," Uzume continued, and Dante's attention turned away from his thoughts to the girl in front of him.

"Wow, you must have been really busy last night, Uzume." Musubi said with the brightest of smiles.

"Yeah, I suppose you could say that," the star wearing Sekirei said, absently bringing her left hand to clutch her right elbow. It was a posture that Dante recognized from someone who didn't want to discuss whatever topic the current conversation was about. "I actually just woke up a few seconds ago and was about to get a snack before you two came knocking on the door carrying what looks like an entire houses worth of furniture like they were pillows."

"Dante nodded his head at her explanation, putting his observations of her character in the back of his mind for later perusal. "Well, don't let us keep you from your food." exchanging final pleasantries, Uzume left for the kitchens while Dante and Musubi began making their way to the stairs. Just as they were about to try and figure out how they could make it up without losing some of the more loosely placed items, Miya came walking downstairs with a duster in hand.

"I thought I heard you to come in – oh my," Miya cut herself off mid sentence and brought a hand up to her mouth in mild surprise as she saw how much the pair was carrying. She made her way all the way downstairs and looked eyed the two large stacks of furniture they were carrying. "Look at all this stuff you two bought."

"Weelll, we pretty much had to buy all the essentials since neither of us have any furniture of our own," Dante's eyes traveled up towards all of the stuff he was carrying above his head. He grimaced. "Though, I think we may have ended up getting a few more items than necessary."

The landlady gave him a warm smile that had a hint of amusement to it. "It does look like you two bought quite a bit," she admitted, her perennial smile still in place. "But that's not necessarily a bad thing. I'm sure your room will be a lot homelier with some of the things you bought, even if they aren't necessarily needed to live."

"True," Dante said with a nod and a smile. "We managed to get a lot of nice furniture and appliances for our room. I think by the time we're done with setting everything up it will feel just like home."

"Well that's good," the purplette replied with her typical calm smile. She looked at the many furniture and items the pair were carrying with an amused expression. "I don't think I've seen anyone capable of lifting so many large and heavy objects at the same time. You two must be pretty strong."

"That's because I'm a fist type Sekirei!" Musubi replied in a cheerful voice before Dante could tell her to keep her mouth shut.

Miya however, just giggled. "You're so funny." It seemed she was willing to write the girls comments off as an odd quirk.

He was brought out of his revery when Miya then looked over at him with an amused eye. "And what about you? Are you a..." she giggled again, "fist type Sekirei as well?"

"Eh, no. I'm just cool," Dante said with a shrug, which caused the many items above his head to wobble. He cursed slightly, tilting his hand quickly and in various directions to correct the balance of weight in order to keep the objects from falling. He breathed a sigh of relief, only to pout when he heard Miya giggling again, this time at him.

"Well then, I'll leave you two to get started." She told the pair.

The pair made their way upstairs, a more difficult task then the door. Because of the size of the items they were carrying, they were forced to take them up one at a time. Once done with that they had to move them into their room. This again required more effort, as most of the items they had bought were too large to fit in through the doorway normally. Things like the table had to be turned on it's side in order to get through, while the loveseat had to be twisted at a forty-five degree angle. The pair worked for somewhere around fifteen to twenty minutes before they managed to get everything in the room.

"Alright!" Dante said, taking a deep breath and releasing it before he clapped his hands together. "Getting everything set up and built is going to take some time, so let's get started. Musubi, why don't you begin by setting the couch where ever you want to sit when watching TV, then set up the table, the lamps and plants and put the curtains up. While you do that I'll build the dresser and the desk."

Musubi gave the blond a big smile. "I would be happy to, Dante."

The pair worked for another two hours, with Musubi setting up the furniture and Dante building the pieces that were in the boxes using his sonic screwdriver. By the time they had finished the room looked much more cozy, more like a well lived in home then a sterile room whose sole saving grace was that it wasn't white.

The desk had been placed in front of one of the windows, allowing whoever used it to look out at the horizon and the city beyond. Because the room was on the West side they would be able to watch the sunset from it. The drawer had been placed in a corner of the room on the same side as the desk, and was being used as a TV stand. Just a few feet from it was the loveseat, situated by the second window. The lamps they had bought were standing in three different places, one near the desk, another by the door and the last in the corner with the television. The two plants were located in the two corners of the room on the other side, while the bed was still in the center.

"What do you think, Musubi?" asked Dante as he looked at the woman beside him.

"It's perfect," Misubi said, beaming as she looked over the work she and her Ashikabi had done together. She looked over at him and her smile widened, reaching her eyes and conveying feelings of happiness and warmth. "Don't you think so too, Dante?"

Dante looked at the girl and smiled, something he had been doing a lot more often since the odd and slightly naïve Sekirei had come into his life. "Yes, it is."

They looked at the room for another minute or two before Dante checked his wrist for the time.

"It's not too late. Want to go for a walk?"

"Sure!" Musubi said happily. He snorted in amusement as they left their room. It was time to go fix something. Or better yet, someone.

Dante lead the way, pretending to wonder around idily while in fact he was leading Musubi and himself towards a very specific park. Musubi didn't notice, having too much fun looking at the city until they arrived at the park, which she apparently liked if her reaction was anything to judge by.

"We should come here for a picnic sometime." The eccentric Sekirei said.

"Yes we..."

Then he saw it. Or her to be precise. Sitting on the bench a few feet away was a woman with short, light brown hair, and a sleepy expression on her face. She was wearing nothing more then a button up shirt, a pair of panties and a doctors coat that was stained with blood. Beyond the blood stains, the most noticeable thing about her was that she had a crimson Sekirei mark on her forehead instead of her back.

"Musubi. Look."

"Hm?" Musubi turned her head to see what Dante was looking at and spotted the girl instantly.

"Why does she have her Sekirei crest on her forehead?"

"But she…she…" Musubi said, clutching her chest about to cry.

Dante turned to her, his eyes alight with a kind of fury he'd never seen. "She's what?"

"A scrapped number, they…they can't be winged," she said, tears rolling down her face.

"I see." Dante said, closing his eyes and clenching his fist. 'Damn Minaka, damn him and his forsaken game, this woman sees herself as nothing more than damaged goods because of him.' He then walked over to the Sekirei and bent down a little to get to eye level with her. "Hey, what's your name, I'm Dante."

"Akitsu, it's Akitsu," she said emotionlessly.

He extended his hand and said, "Well Akitsu, wanna come with us? I can give you someplace warm to stay. At least for a few days."

A smile broke Akitsu's sullen features when a pompous voice spoke up. "Sorry, but she's going to be part of my collection, not yours."

Dante turned and glared, seeing a short, blonde teenager in a fancy white suit with two people beside him.

One was a man with short, messy, silver haired, man with brown eyes. He wore a black, open front, long-sleeved shirt with an 'x' pattern across his midsection. He wore black combat gloves and long black pants, topped with a long orange scarf.

The other was a woman with long brown hair and matching eyes, a red bow around her neck and in her hair, she wore a white and black dress with long matching boots and short gloves. Her most notable feature was the long red scythe she had, which she held like a baby.

"Well, looks like the dipshit Ashikabi of the South finally decided to show up." Dante muttered, but they still caught what he said.

The boys eyes narrowed in annoyance, but the woman's reaction was more...violative.

"How dare you!?" She shouted at Dante, who didn't look the least bit bothered. "You take that back you filthy human before I slice you into pieces!"

Dante's eyes narrowed even further. "Go ahead and try it."

She snarled and grabbed her sytches handle, running forward and swinging it at him, Musubi too slow to intervene, but Dante didn't need help.

He leaned back, causing the scythe to miss him, grabbed he hilt and stopping it dead despite its speed. The woman's eyes widened as he spun in close, striking her in the face with a punch and sending her skidding back while Dante simultaneously yanked the sytche from her hands as she did.

Everyone present except for Akitsu was visably shocked at Dante's speed and strength as he spun the sycthe easily with one hand, so quick it was a blur at his side.

"First of all, I'm not human. Not completely. Secondly, I don't plan on giving up Akitsu like she's property unless she actually wants to go with you, which I very seriously doubt. Thirdly," he looked at the blade, "I think this is a half gram heavy on the back end, just so you know. Lastly, I don't give dirtbags what they want."

Dante stopped spinning the scythe and held it between his pointer and middle fingers before snapping it without any apparent effort.

"Now take my advice, turn around, and run away." He finished, holding the blade half in his hand while throwing the other at the girl, which she caught easily.

The girl was grinding her teeth toghther, but without her full and undamaged weapon, she couldn't do anything.

The other Sekirei started to reach for his weapon, but the next thing anyone knew, Dante was gone and he was feeling the cold of metal against his throat.

"I said to leave. Don't heed my very wise advice again, and I won't be so generous a second time." He told him, holding the blade easily.

'Impossible. I never even saw him move. How is he that fast?' He thought in shock.

Musubi was shocked as well, but she also looked like she was about to explode with happiness and excitement for some reason.

Dante reappeared next to them again while glaring at the group of three.

The Ashikabi in question was looking furious, but he turned and snapped, "We're leaving. But don't think this is over. You..."

"...will see us again, blah, blah, blah. Just get the fuck out of here asshole, because if you stay, I'll be forced to taunt you again." Dante said scornfully.

Having nothing else to say, the group turned to and leave furious and bitter at the Ashibiki that had made a mockery of them.

After they left, Dante relaxed as he let out a sigh followed by a chuckle. "Haven't insulted anyone like that since my last run in with the Sontarans."

He turned and noticed two things. Firstly, was that Akitsu was looking at him with her eyes half lidded which he supposed was in suprise. Secondly, was that Musubi was staring at him in absolute awe.

"Uh, Musubi? You all-urgh!"

Dante was unable to finish his sentence as the excitable burnette tackled hugged him and started squeezing him.

"Dante how where you able to do all that? It was so cool!"

"Musubi...can't...breathe!"

She looked down to see him starting to turn purple in the face.

"Ah! Sorry!"

After catching his breath, Dante turned his direction towards Akitsu who spoke.

"I have no home...I am... broken... I'm... a failure..."

He cupped the woman's face and lifted it so she was forced to make eye contact. "You are not a failure." He said, watching as she blinked at his proclamation. "I don't know what idiot told you that, but you are most definitely no failure."

"But I can't be winged. A failure like me will never be able to find an Ashikabi. I'm useless... a discarded tool..."

"Just because you can't be winged doesn't mean you don't have worth," Dante said adamantly. "A persons worth is not determined by something so menial. You have something that is special only to you, something no one else has but you, something that makes you unique. That is what makes you special, and is what gives you worth."

"But I -"

"Come with us," He said, surprising the woman whose opened mouth quickly snapped closed. "Come with us and I'll prove that you are worth something. I'll prove that you can shine just as better as any other Sekirei."

The woman looked at him for several seconds before speaking. "Ok..."

_One hour later_

The two were nearing Izumo Inn as Dante was carrying a now sleeping Akitsu in his arms. After agreeing to go with them, the hybrid had simply scooped her into his arms, surprising the woman greatly and began walking home. Thankfully she had not protested and seemed to have gotten used to it because at some point she had obviously become comfortable enough to fall asleep.

Dante looked over at Musubi as they continued walking. The girl had a smile on her face and didn't seem to be bothered by him having another woman in his arms, though she could've been faking it.

"Musubi." He called, getting her attention. When she looked at him he continued, "Are you alright with this? Me being with another Sekirei, I mean?"

"Of course!" Musubi said with her standard bright smile. "Why wouldn't I be ok with it? The more Sekirei you have, the better protected you are." Dante rose an eyebrow but eventually laughed her words off as Musubi simply being Musubi. In many ways he envied the girl for her naivety.

The pair arrived back at Izumo Inn and Musubi opened the door for Dante, as he still had a sleeping Akitsu in his arms. He offered her a smile and a kiss on the cheek as a thank you, before walking inside where he ran into Miya.

"Oh my, what's this?" Miya said as she walked over to them, her eyes going to the woman in Dante's arms. "Is this a friend of yours Dante? She looks hurt."

"She's fine now." Dante replied with a sigh. When Miya gave him a confused look he decided it may be wise if he elaborated, especially since she was the landlady and the one he had to get permission from to let Akitsu live with them. "Musubi and I found her alone in the park, she looked so defeated and I – we, wanted to help her." He frowned as he looked down at the young woman. "She said she was broken, and that no one wanted her. I couldn't just leave her like that..." He gave the purple-haired woman a pleading look, "Do you think it would be alright if she stayed here with us?"

Miya took several seconds to gather her reply, seemingly thinking deeply about his words. After a few seconds she smiled. "She seems to have had a hard life. You know it's my policy to never turn away someone in need, and from what you said she is very much in need of help. Of course she can stay."

"Thank you," Dante gave the woman a smile. It soon changed into a sly grin as he said, "If I wasn't sure you'd beat me half to death for it I could kiss you for that."

"Oh my," Miya placed her hands on her cheeks and effected a blush. "Aren't you bold, Dante, saying you would do something so intimate to a widower like me. What would my dear late husband think?"

Said hybrid just rolled his eyes as he made his way up the stairs. He moved over to the bed and managed to show some dexterity with his feet by grasping the blanket between his toes. Pulling back the covers he knelt down and lowered Akitsu onto the bed, then pulled the covers up to her neck.

Already missing the warmth from his body, Akitsu stirred. Her eyes opened up a crack before widening ever so slightly as she took a look around the room. Her eyes landed on the blond, making her relax as she saw his ocean blue eyes looking at her in concern. "So... it wasn't a dream..."

"Did you want it to be?" asked Dante. When she shook her head 'no' he grinned. "Don't worry, this is no dream. From now on, you'll be with us, a new addition to our..." he paused, wondering about what the appropriate term for them was. After a second he decided to go with, "family."

Akitsu looked at him in confusion. "Family?"

"That's right," Dante said, the impulsive nature of his youth coming out to play after several thousands years of inaction. "Musubi wants a sister, and well, I'm not actually sure what we are yet but I think we'll be something more then brother and sister."

"So... you'll take care of me?"

"That's right."

"You won't... abandon me?"

In response to her question Dante leaned down until their noses were touching. Looking into her eyes he said, "I promise to never abandon you. No matter what happens I will always look after you, and cherish you as someone as beautiful as you deserves to be cherished. I swear this on my life as a time lord."

'Timelord?' wondered Akitsu before her mind was swept away when Dante kissed her. Slowly, she began to kiss back. Her arms came up and wrapped around his neck and she could feel her entire body becoming almost unbearably hot.

Much like the last time Dante kissed a Sekirei, he could feel his energy being drained. However, where Musubi's seemed to continue sucking his energy out until she gained her wings, with Akitsu it felt almost like something was blocking her from gaining the necessary energy to do the same. Also, Dante relived something else that had happened before. Before when he had winged Musubi,the energy that had been taken from him had been used to forge a low level mental bond, enough to feel each other's emotions. This felt like it ws being blocked.

Concentrating the energy, Dante followed it's path as it flowed through the woman's body, tracing it, making sure to follow the path it took to it's conclusion.

When he did, a frown marred his face. Instead of stopping at her back where her crest would be and gathering there until she had enough to gain her wings, it stopped at her forehead and pushed against some sort of mental block.

A need for air soon became relevant and Dante pulled back with a gasp, greedily sucking in the much needed oxygen. He looked down at Akitsu and saw tears beginning to gather in her eyes.

"Hey now," he whispered, using his left hand to gently wipe the tears away. "What's with the tears?"

"Ah," Akitsu started, her despondent eyes dropping away from Dante's questioning ones. "I was really hoping that I could truly be your Sekirei."

He frowned. Placing the hand that was wiping tears under her chin, he pulled her face back towards his. "Let's not give up yet," he said, causing her eyes to turn to him. "I still have one more thing I want to try." And with that he pressed his lips back down against hers. This time, he did not just follow the flow of it as it traveled through the woman's pathways. He prepared, and waited, and when he felt his hit that strange block that had been keeping his energy from going where it needed, Dante did something diffrent. He focused his energy, shaping it until it was sharp, then thrust it forwards towards the barrier as hard as he could. It shattered like glass and his energy flooded into Atsuki.

Her crest glowed brightly and shifted slightly, becoming whole and repaired before vanishing and reappearing on her back. The tempature in the room started plunging rapidly until two wings made of ice formed, stretching from Atsuki's back in a show of ice and light.

_MBI Headquarters_

Within M.B.I. headquarters alarms were going off and several workers were running around like headless chickens. The alarms were blaring and panic had set in. Everyone was trying to figure out what was going on, and of course, all of their actions were counteracting the actions of each other, making it impossible for them to get any of the answers they sought.

Fortunately for them, the cavalry had arrived.

Unfortunately for them, she was a hard ass that they all feared even more the Hiroto Minaka.

A slender women with grey hair and grey eyes walked into the room and began trying to return order to the place. She had a long scar over her left eye, and was wearing trousers, a black top and a white lab coat.

"Everybody calm down before I shove my foot so far up your asses that you won't be sitting for months!" she shouted as several workers typed away frantically on their computers in an attempt to gather as much data as possible about the current event that was causing the sirens to go off. She walked over to one of the work stations and looked at the data flowing, ignoring the way the man stiffened from her mere presence alone. "What have you found out?"

"It's Akitsu ma'am!" One of the workers shouted. "S-she's just been winged!"

"Impossible!" the woman said as she walked over to the computer and watched the feedback. Her eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. "This shouldn't be possible. I want all information you have on Akitsu and the Ashikabi who winged her, and I want it yesterday! Get to work!"

"Ma'am!"

Up on the top of the M.B.I headquarters, Minaka Hiroto watched the proceedings inside of the lab on his portable monitor with a grin. "Dante Price, such an interesting, mysterious and mischievous character you are. Will you be the one who is destined to help these little birds spread their wings?"

Like an answer to his question, his cell phone began to vibrate as he took it out and saw the following text: **Damn right I am. Idiot.**

Minaka sweat dropped and muttered, "That was unneeded."

He phone buzzed again and the new text said: **No it wasn't.**

_Back at Izumo Inn_

The two separated to catch their breaths as Akitsu's grey eyes looked into Dante's brown ones.

"Hey, your mark is gone," Dante commented with a grin. "Looks like my theory was right."

Akitsu's eyes widened and her hand went to her forehead. "It's gone?" she whispered.

"Yep, and you've got wings," he looked at her and winked. "I guess your not so broken after all, eh?"

It was impossible for Akitsu to keep the tears from her eyes as she looked at Dante. "Thank you, thank you, thank you..." she said in a repeating mantra over and over again.

Dante smiled, kissed her on the forehead and said, "Get some rest, tomorrow you'll begin a new life with Musubi and me."

"Yes, my Ashikabi," Akitsu said, closing her eyes as she let sleep take her. A small smile making it's way onto her face. Her last thoughts before sleep claimed her were on her Ashikabi and her hope that they would share a bright future together.

Dante let out a sigh as he sat down on the newly bought couch and thought, 'This ain't gonna get any easier than it looked at first.'


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Dante decided to wait all night for Akitsu to wake up. Well by waiting it meant setting everything up, such as putting clothes away to hooking up his computer. Musubi decided to go to bed but Dante suggested to have Akitsu sleep in the bed for the night, so she used a futon. After hooking the computer up, he decided to do a little research on who he was up against. Connecting to the internet was no problem, as he then began to learn more about the enemy. Of course he didn't find anything on the Sekirei Plan, to his prediction, but he found interesting data on his competition. Dante found that the brat with the two Sekirei from earlier was Hayato Mikogami, a rich kid who was a thrill seeker of sort. Digging deeper, and using his sonic screwdriver to make his trail untraceable, he found out that he had no tolerance for failure and was mostly controlled by his parents for the better half of his life. Dante had to scoff at that since he's meet a person or two in the past that was like that. An example would be Anarky, who was one of the Bat Family's rouges. Was rich and young, but unlike Hayato, had some tolerance for failure and his view was changed. But that's a story for another time. For now, he copied the file and saved it to both his PC hard drive and a USB drive. He labeled it: Hayato Mikogami: Ashikabi of the South.

Next he looked up any higher power in the east quadrant of the city. It took awhile, but after a few minutes, he found the name Higa Izumi. Dante gritted his teeth because he knew exactly what kind of bastard this guy was. He even knew at the current momment that he was using Uzume to his advantage due to her Ashikabi being in a hospital that was under his control.

'I'm going to need to do something about that soon.'

Anger aside, he found out this guy was a entrepreneur and even has his own secretary(which was undoubtingly a Sekirei). Dante did the same as the other file, copying it, and labeled it: Higa Izumi: Ashikabi of the West.  
He did try looking for an Ashikabi of the East, but he remembered that he was a sort of 'off the gird' kindof guy. Dante pondered about this and thought that maybe this guy could be an ally. All he knew about the guy was that he provided Sekirei protection until they find their own Ashikabi, but charged them money for it. That was the one draw back about this guy.

Dante sighed and pushed back from the desk.

'This is going to be hard if I have to outmaneuver all of these people and that idiot of a game master.'

He checked the time and saw it was around 6:00 in the morning.

'Maybe some light training will calm me down.'

Dante stood up from his chair and quickly went to his dresser and changed into a white muscle shirt and some light weight pants before leaving the room quietly.

The hybrid walked down the hall lightly, making sure not to make a creek as he headed for the backyard and opened the door to see an interesting sight. Miya was standing calmly with her eyes closed, holding a sheathed katana while standing near the tree as leaves gently falling around her as she caught one on the sheath, perfectly balanced. She opened her eyes and there was a flash of silver before the leaf was falling again, split perfectly in half down the middle.  
Dante clapped slowing, getting Miya's attention as he said, "Very nice. I haven't met many people that can move that fast."

Miya smiled. "Thank you Dante."

He then hopped down from the porch and asked politely, "May I see that?"

Miya rose an eyebrow but handed it to Dante with a warning. "You break it, you buy it, and this would wipe your bank account out before you covered even 1/8 of the hilt."

Dante took the blade easily and looked over it.

"Well made. Crafted at least twenty years ago. Balanced..." He took the sword out of the sheath and looked over the blade and finished. "Just right."

Dante then looked up as a handful of leaves were falling down slowly as he swung the blade once at them, then slowly sheathed it until only a sliver was left.

"And sharpness is unparalleled." He completely sheathed the blade and handed it back as all the leaves fell, all sliced in half lengthwise.

Both of Miya's eyes just a sliver wider then normal. "I'm surprised you can handle this weapon so well."

"Let's just say I've had a lot of practice."

Miya accepted this without question. "So, what are you doing up so early?"

"Some light training. It's been awhile and I needed to loosen up a bit."

"Ah. Would you mind if I watched?"

"Not at all."

She then took a seat on the porch as Dante nodded then got into a stance. He closed his eyes for a second and visualized a big man, around the size of a club bouncer, standing opposite to him.

Dante then went through his analysis. "Head cocked to the left. Partial deafness in ear." He then went through his stragety of attack. "First point of attack. Two. Throat. Paralyse vocal cords. Stop screaming. Three. Got to be heavy drinker. Floating rib to the liver. Four. Finally, drag the left leg. Fist the patella. Summary prognosis: Conscious in 90 seconds Martial efficacy: quarter of an hour at best. Full faculty of recovery, unlikely."

His eyes snapped open and he went with ruthless speed and efficiency through his movements, only unable to move as he really wanted due to not having a real opponent.

This went on for a few minutes, Dante's mind set slowly shifting from calm and calculating to not thinking at all, simply acting. After a half hour of this, he was pleasantly warm in the cool air and a little short of breath.

'I shouldn't be this tired already. What gives?'

Dante leaned against one of the trees in the yard, his hand pressed firmly against it.

Suddenly he felt something touch his mind and before he could react, he was yanked from his body and standing someplace new.

He frowned as he looked around the area he now found himself in. Everywhere he looked the hybrid could only see trees, trees, and more trees... with the occasional plant of course. It looked like he was in some kind of jungle, even the air was moist and sticky, much like the jungle planets he's visited. He heard an echo through the forest, someone was crying, and they sounded young. He began to walk, hoping to find the source of the crying. As he moved, a part of him tried to figure out just how he had gotten here. Was this a dream? It couldn't have been since he was wide awake. But if so it was the most realistic dream he had ever had. He could feel his lungs pumping air in and out of his body with each breath he took, the feel of his feet crunching the rocks and gravel of the forest floor, even his hands were tingling as he was forced to move branches from his path.

He ventured deeper into the jungle, eventually finding the source of the crying in the form of a young girl. She was perched up on a branch, crouched down with her face buried in the tree. Her entire body was shaking from the crying she was doing, and Dante was worried that the little girl might lose her balance and end up falling if she didn't get down from their soon.

"Hello there little one." Dante said kindly. His words seemed to bring the girl out of her crying state, at least they attracted her attention. Bright green eyes with the innocence of youth peered down at him partially hidden by a frame of messy blond hair while the lower half of her face remained hidden behind the branches. He gave the girl a warm smile and held out his hands. "Come on, why don't you jump down from there and big brother will catch you."

The little girls eyes seemed to light up with hope at the word 'big brother'. She looked from the hybrid to the tree branch, than back to him. After a few seconds, she scuttled to her feet and Dante worried that she might end up falling. He was thankful when she didn't and instead managed to safely jump down towards him. Like a feather the little girl fell into his arms, and Dante pulled her close until he had one arm secured around her legs and the other her back.

"There you go." Dante said, giving the girl a grin. "So what's your name?"

"K-Kusano." The girl said in a shy voice.

"Kusano, huh? That's a cute name." Dante gave the girl a kind smile. Kusano gave him her own shy smile even as a small blush lit her face and the blond continued. "So what's wrong, Ku? Why have you called me?"

"It-it's all Kusano's fault." Kusano said, sniffing. "Kusano was being bad and selfish and wanted to go outside."

"So what happened?" He asked softly.

Kusano opened her mouth to speak, but before she could get a word in her body began to glow. As if an invisible hand had grabbed onto her, she was pulled away from Dante, her eyes widening as one of her hands desperately shot out to latch onto him. Dante reciprocated the gesture out of insinct, but the moment their hands touched, his own went right through hers. "No! Big brother! Help me, big brother!" She called out, even as her body began to fade.

"Don't worry, Ku! I'll find you!" Dante said just as the girl disappeared, leaving him alone in the strange jungle.

He then found himself back in the yard, leaning against the tree again.

Dante frowned.

'I knew my coming here would accelerate things, but not that fast. If she's already reacting, I'm going to need to move quickly then I planned.'

"Dante, are you ok?"

He blinked and looked back to the porch, Miya still sitting there and looking concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why?"

"Because you've been standing there for eight minutes looking at that tree."

Dante blinked again. He didn't think it was that long.

"Sorry, just thinking too hard." He pushed off the tree and dusted his hands of the tree bark. "Well, I think I'll go see if Musubi and Atsuki are up."

The hybrid went into the house and up the stairs to his room to see the two just starting to wake up. He leaned on the frame and asked, "You two have a good nights rest?"

"Yes." Musubi yawned. She stretched her back and arms which popped as she let one of her arms fall back down to her sides while the other went up to her eyes and began rubbing the sleep out of them.

Akitsu blinked several times, her free hand moving up to rub the sleep out of them as her mouth opened in a wide yawn. "Ah...yes my Ashikabi."  
Dante smiled. "Good. Because after breakfast, we're going shopping."

"What for?" Musubi asked, putting a finger to her chin in confusion.

"Well for starters, you only have one outfit and Akitsu has none. So, think it might be important to get something else to wear."

"Ok." Even to Musubi's more childish mind that made sense.

"In the meantime, Akitsu, there's some shirts and pants you can wear in the meantime in the dresser until we find you something else. I'll be down stairs..." Dante stopped talking and snapped his head around.

"Dante?" Musubi asked.

He didn't respond. He had felt something. He didn't know what, it ws too brief and far away for him to do that, but he had sensed a change. A shift in the fabric of this universe. Something that shouldn't be there, like him, but was. Something...powerful.

"Dante?" He felt something poke at the back of his head and finally turned, Musubi standing in front of him and looking confused.

"What's wrong?"

"I thought I... No. Never mind, just my mind playing tricks on me."

"Your mind plays tricks on you?" Musubi was confused.  
He sighed. He forgot this girl didn't get figures of speech. "It's nothing important. Why don't I meet you two down stairs in a minute for breakfast? I'm cooking."

"Ok!" The enthusiastic Sekirei cried happily, pumping a fist.

"Ok." Akitsu said in her normal quite tone. Dante smiled and closed the door behind him, giving them some privacy. Once the lock clicked, he leaned his back against it and frowned and pondered what he had felt briefly.

'What was that?'

Dante then heard a door down the hall open and looked to see Uzume coming out of her room in her normal star shirt and jeans.

"Hey Uzume."

She turned and smiled as she saw him. "Hey Dante. Surprised you're up this early."

He shrugged. "I'm an early bird. Though I am suprised to see you up early as well."

"I couldn't sleep. Don't know why." She said quickly, but she didn't meet Dante's eyes when she said it.

"Hhmm. Well, I'm going to make breakfast. Care to join me?"

"Sure. Just so long as you don't burn anything."

"If I do, it's your fault."

The two walked down the stairs, trading jabs back and forth in fun, heading to the kitchen to start off the day.

_10 blocks from the inn_

It was quite at this distance from the home of the hybrid time lord and his small group of Sekirei and friends. Nobody was in the streets at this time, too busy getting up to start the day.

There was a sharp crackle and a small tendril of electricity came from nowhere. It happened twice more before there was a flash of light and a loud crash.

"Ow..."

A teen was rubbing his head as he picked himself up off the ground. His clothes were nothing noticeable, a plain black shirt, a black hoodie, and dark blue jeans. His hair was also pitch black, with his skin slightly tanned. His face had sharp lines on it, but the interesting thing ws his eyes. They were a bright silver, boarding on white, surrounding his pupil.

"What the hell...?" He muttered as he brushed off his hoodie and pants. "Where am I?"

He then heard a sharp crackle and the teen quickly checked his wrist. On it was a gauntlet that had a a number pad on it and under that was a small compartment, roughly a bit larger then a matchbox with a twist able handle, which was smoking slightly.

"Oh,no,no,no,no,no,no!" The teen quickly opened the compartment and a large amount of smoke came out.

"Ah, crap!" He shouted, closing the hatch. "Just what I need on top of a failed test, a broken TARDIS." He growled out. "Now what the hell am I supposed to do?"

He looked around and sighed. "I need someplace quite to think." He crouched down low, one hand lightly touching the ground before he pushed off, going thirty feet into the air before stopping in midair, standing on nothing but air. He then started running, moving too fast to be seen any clearer then a blur.

_Later on at the local mall_

"Akitsu, you ok in there?" Dante called.

The group was currently standing in a woman's clothing store, Musubi sitting next to a large amount of bags holding clothes she liked and they were currently waiting for Akitsu to come out of the changing room.

"Ah...I'm having some trouble putting my clothes on." She admitted quietly.

"Do you need help?" He asked.

"Ah. Yes."

Looking around to make sure no one was watching him, he slipped inside of the changing room. The first thing he saw was Akitsu tangled up in several straps that he was sure did not belong on a kimono. Though he would admit to having never dealt with a kimono for females. Not quite sure what to do to help her, the hybrid began grabbing at the straps and attempting to untangle her first.

"Ok, let's see here..." Dante stuck his tongue out between his teeth as he focused on what he was doing. It really was quite difficult to keep his focus. With each strap of fabric he managed to untangle the girl out of, more and more of her skin was revealed, milky white skin that seemed to glow ethereally in the lighting of the changing room.

It took a while before the two of them were finally able to get Akitsu dressed, the task proving more difficult than he felt it truly warranted, and during that time the hybrid noticed that was his newest Sekirei was wearing wasn't quite a kimono. The top was a white shirt with long, flowing sleeves in a similar make to a kimono, but that was where the similarities ended. The cut out for her head was lined with black fabric and was larger then the standard cutout for her head, it was wider, allowing some of Akitsu's shoulders to be seen and then going down in a very low V cut that showed off nearly a third of her breasts and stopped at her upper stomach. A black obi with a bow in the front held the shirt tightly against her body.

He had also noticed at some point, that she had chains in her ensemble, which he had only spotted when she began trying to place them around herself. With some help from him one set of chains was used to bind her clothes together above her breasts, while the other set looped around her neck and then went down between her cleavage.  
Finishing her look was a two piece skirt that wrapped around the lower half of her body. It was the simplest part of the woman's ensemble, which was a relief on Dante's part.

"You look really nice in these clothes," He said with a smile, though he had to admit the chains just looked weird. "I don't know why but they suit you."

"Ah. So you like them?" She asked.

Dante then brought his face close to hers and kissed her. Her wings flared out and at first she was surprised, but she kissed back. The wings faded as they seperated.

"You look beautiful." said Dante.

"Ah. If you like them than I like them." Akitsu said.

"I just have one question. Where did you get those chains?" Seriously, they were in a clothing store, one that sold regular clothing. He hadn't noticed her holding onto them when she had first entered the changing room. So when and where had she gotten them?

"Ah," Akitsu started, then looked at the chains on wrapping around her frame.

"I found them near our home."

Dante blinked. She had carried those all the way here? How had he not noticed them before?

"Ok then, so we'll get these, and maybe find a few more articles of clothing for you." He said, pulling her out of the changing room. "After all, we should get you a kimono or two so I can take you out to an expensive restaurant on a date or something and..." He trailed off when he started to feel the similar affect he felt earlier that morning. It was stronger now and felt...familiar.

He looked around and thought, 'What is that?'

Then just as sudden, it was gone.

"Ah...Ashikabi?"

Dante snapped his head up to see Akitsu and Musubi looking at him concernly.

"Are you alright Dante?" Musubi asked.

He gave them a reassuring smile.

"I'm fine. Oh and Akitsu."

"Yes."

"Why aren't you wearing any panties?"

"Ah...I...forgot."

_Meanwhile_

"What now?"

The teen from the earlier morning had been running for hours, trying to find someplace quite, but he couldn't find anyplace where he could possible fix the bracelet or even look it over. Right now he was standing on top of what looked like some sort of mall, but right now the damn thing insisted on beeping randomly. It was getting annoying.

"Ugh. Well, this is a fine mess. Anything else you want to throw at me?!" He shouted at the sky.

"Can you be quite please? I'm trying to enjoy my drink."

The teen turned and his slightly tanned face instantly turned sunburned red.  
Leaning against a wall was a woman drinking from a bottle, but she was a knockout. A part of her long black hair was tied up in a pony tail, and She was wearing a very short purple Chinese dress which showed her cleavage and belly button, and her figure could put super models to shame.

"Uuuhhhhh... Hi." The teen said.

The woman smiled. "Hello."

"How, long have you been there?"

"Not long. Last five minutes or so."

"Ah."

The woman took another swig from her bottle. From the slight scent, the teen could tell she was drinking sake.

"So what's a handsome stud like you doing up here?" She asked while wiping her mouth.

"Oh. Uumm, just...problems. I'm Tobias by the way."

"No. 3 Kazehana."

Tobias rose an eyebrow. "What's with the number?"

"Nothing important. So, what's that thing, on your wrist?"

Tobias looked at the device and quickly rolled his sleeve over it. "Nothing, just a...project that's not working out."

"Hhmm. Well, maybe I can take your mind off it." She smiled seductivly as she moved forwards.

Tobias's face turned redder. "Uh, no thanks, I'm good."

"Hhmm? That's a first. Not many turn my looks." She smiled as a breeze blew past them, moving her hair.

Tobias's eyes narrowed as the blush died on his face. "Here's another first. Not many girls I meet are able to manipulate the air."

The woman paused, then smiled again. "You are good. How did you know?"

Tobias smirked. "Because the wind is also my domain." The gently breeze suddenly grew stronger, going from gentle to tornado force, causing their hair and clothes to flap wildly and dust to be kicked up, obscuring their vision for a few seconds before it died down, only Tobias was now gone.

Kazehana smiled. "Very nice. I'll have to see if I can find him again." She then made a face as she lifted her bottle, looked inside it, and sighed. "But he could've done it without getting dust in my sake."

"That's the least of your concerns."

Kazehana looked up to see the lighting twins glaring down at her.

"Oh, hello. If you're looking for something to drink I'm afraid mine is ruined." She said causally.

"Then I suppose we'll just have to take you're life!" They shouted, shooting bolts at her. She easily dodged, leaping backwards swiftly and the bolts hitting the roof.

"A fight? Well, I'm not really in the mood, but oh well. If you insist."

The twins jumped towards her, ready to fire bolts again in midair.

"Divine punishment of the wind god!"

The twins looked to the side just in time to get hit with a massive visible shockwave of wind while the force felt like getting hit by a semi truck. The two were sent flying away, vanishing into the distance.

Kazehana looked to the side to see Tobias standing there, eyes hard and his fist extended. He then spun on heel and started to walk away.

"Only reason I saved you was because those two have been following me nearly all day. I guess they thought I was you. Had to use that move twice to get rid of them."

Kazehana smiled and started walking after Tobais. He stopped and turned.

"What are you...?" Before he could finish asking, Kazehana grabbed Tobais by the back of his head and pulled him into a kiss.

Tobias's face went supernova while the back of Kazehana's neck started glowing brightly as the wind rapidly picked up to hurricane force winds, and the wind even gained color, turning white while whirling in a pair of wings made of air before they dissolved into nothing and the wind calmed down.

Tobias pulled back, wide eyed and mouthing soundlessly before he said, "What the hell!?"

Kazehana smiled. "Hello my Ashikabi."

_Back at the inn_

"Damn bro, first you find her now this?" Uzume grinned at the hybrid as she sat down at the dinner table with Dante and everyone else. She was seated on the opposite side of him, absently twirling some noodles from her stir fry with her chopsticks before placing the food in her mouth. Both Musubi and Akitsu were sitting on his left and right respectively, with the girl wearing skimpy shrine maiden clothes shoveling food into her mouth like it might disappear at any second and the ice user eating in her slow way. Miya was in her usual spot at the head of the table, her eating measured and graceful.

"Well," Dante started in a calm voice. "I do admit that there is something... erotic about Akitsu's style of dress. However, I'm sorry to disappoint you but I didn't choose her outfit."

"Eh?" Uzume blinked, a string of noodles hanging out of her mouth and sticking to her chin. She slurped up the noodles, then turned to Akitsu. "Is this true? Did you actually pick those clothes?"

"Ah...I like them." She admitted, before she went back to her eating.

"Why?" pressed Uzume, placing the elbow of her left arm on the table. "Why would want to wear something like that?"

"Ah..." Akitsu looked over at Dante and flushed a light shade of pink on her cheeks. "Because it means I belong to my Ashikabi."

"What?!" This did not just come from Uzume, but also from Dante, who, despite himself, was equally surprised by her declaration.

"What do you mean by that?/What do you mean you belong to him?" The words were spoken at the same time by Uzume and Dante. The two paused, their eyes turning to each other in surprise.

Miya giggled behind her hand. "This place is getting so lively. It's too bad Kagari isn't here to see this."

Dante gave the purple-haired landlady a strange look, but was brought back to Akitsu when the she began speaking. "Ah...because he is my Ashikabi."

"Well, I suppose that makes sense." Dante muttered as he scratched his chin in thought.

"How does that make sense?" Uzume asked. "I mean, I still don't get it. Why do you want everyone to know that you belong to him by wearing those kinds of clothes?"

"Because I was broken." Akitsu's answer and tone was very succinct and spoken surprisingly quickly. The firmness in her tone had not been there before, ever. Clearly, this was something she felt very strongly about. "I was not supposed to have an Ashikabi, but Dante gave me wings."  
She then took one of Dante's hands and placed it on her *ahem* chest. This caused him to blush, but he managed to get it under control. He then looked into Akitsu's as she continued.

"I would do anything for you my Ashikabi."

It was here that Dante saw something that no one else, may it be Daleks, Cybermen or even the Silence would ever see in their entire existence. Adoration. While Musubi's was more childish, Akitsu's was of determination and dedication. He could see that she would fight, kill or even die for him. That was something he didn't like all that much. Whenever he got close to someone who adored him, something really bad would happen to them. That's why he secluded himself in all those universe. That's why he was trying to go back for more training from Luke. He didn't want to see anyone else get hurt because of him.

The rest of the dinner proceeded with idle conversation until they were finished, Uzume being done first and leaving the room cheerfully. Once their dishes were put away, Musubi stretched, popping her arms.

"Mm, You sound stiff." Dante noted and Musubi nodded.

"Little bit."

"Maybe you an Akitsu can go take a bath. The water will relax your muscles and Akitsu would probably enjoy it."

"Ok!" Musubi said happily. She hadn't seen the bathes yet and was curious what they looked like. She had only used showers when she was being adjusted.

She grabbed Akitsu's arm and dragged her from the room towards the bath house, leaving Dante shaking his head at Musubi's enthusiasm. Now alone, he figured, "Not a bad night for stargazing. Got nothing better to do."

_In the bathhouse_

"Ahh, this is nice." Musubi sighed as she sank into the bath, letting the heat relax her muscles.

The bath house was on the second floor and was typical of a standard Japanese bath. Made with a light blue tiling that spread out across the floor and one-third of the walls, the rest was made of wood made of a lighter grain. There was a large window which filtered light through the room, illuminating the rectangular wooden bath. It was of a decent size, about large enough to comfortably fit four or five people, and had a wooden platform sticking out of it. Off to the left was a small square plank of wood where the shampoo and soap was, along with a bucket that was used for washing.

When the two Sekirei had arrived, both had stripped and put their clothes in some cubbyholes along the walls, washed themselves with buckets of water, soap, and a sponge, then went to the bath and slowly stepped in. Both were currently sitting and enjoying the tempature.

"Ah. Yes." Akitsu agreed. Something was nagging at her though and she eventually asked. "Ah, our Ashikabi... what's he like?"

"Dante?" Musubi blinked, pausing in her washing to think about what she wanted to say about Dante. After a few seconds she smiled a beautiful smile that lit up the entire room. Or it would have if the room wasn't fogged over with steam. "He's the best Ashikabi anyone could ever ask for. He's so kind and caring. I always get this warm feeling in my heart when he looks at me. I'm sure you'll love being his Sekirei as much as I do."

"Ah," Akitsu once more paused, her voice barely above the volume of a whisper. "I think so to."

Just then the door slid open to reveal Uzume, who had a towel wrapped around but was otherwise naked. She blinked when she spotted the two girls and her face split into a smile.

"Hey, I didn't think anyone else was in here."

"Oh, hi Uzume." Musubi said in the ever cheerful tone she had. Akitsu simply nodded hello.

Uzume merely smiled at the girls respones as she grabbed a bucket, filled it up with water and sat down on the stool where she proceeded to begin the process of cleaning herself up.

"So, tell me, how did you two meet Dante?"

"I fell off a building." Musubi said causally. "Akitsu was homeless and didn't have any place to go."

Uzume couldn't tell if the girl was joking about falling off a building, but Akitsu she felt sorry for. "I guess I'm happy for you then. But aren't you concerned?" she asked Musubi.  
Musubi blinked and tilted her head, an obviously inquiring expression. "Concerned?"

"Yeah, you know. About how another girl's going to be living with your boyfriend," Uzume continued. Akitsu looked up at Uzume when she said said boyfriend, then looked away with a blush, but Musubi remained confused about why she should be concerned. Undeterred, the newest tub member continued. "I mean, now you'll have to be careful about showing too much physical affection, if you know what I mean."

"No, I don't know what you mean," Musubi said in a confused voice. "Dante has no problem showing us both physical affection. He likes my kisses and I'm sure he'll like Akitsu's too."

By now Akitsu's face had taken on a fire truck red color, making impossible to be played off as her face being flushed from the heat of the bath, should a person have bothered taking note of it. Strangely enough, aside from the blush her face was still as expressionless as could be. Uzume on the other hand was looking at Musubi strangely.

"So you don't mind that your boyfriend is two-timing you?" she asked.

"Two timing?" Musubi repeated in a questioning tone. "Is that like discretion? Because I think I'm finally getting that one down."

Uzume face-palmed at the girls gullible and unsuspecting behavior. She opened her mouth again before her eyes landed on the other girl, or more specifically the winged crest on her back. Her eyes widening the busty young woman turned back to Musubi she said, "Wait a minute. Are you two both Sekirei's?"

"How did you know?" asked Musubi, pouting a a bit that Uzume had somehow managed to figure out that she and Akitsu were Sekirei's. And she had just gone through all that trouble actually remembering that she wasn't allowed to tell the other girl about the Sekirei Plan. So much for discretion.

"Because I've got one of those too." Uzume said, turning around and lifting her hair to reveal her own Sekirei crest, the mark attracting Musubi's eyes like a moth to a flame.

"Check it out." Because she had turned around she never saw Musubi's eyes widen, nor the girls face blossom into a smile.  
She also completely missed when the girl cracked her knuckles and prepared for battle.

Dante was sitting against the same tree from earlier when he had gotten Kusano's message, gazing up at the stars through the leaves and branches, thinking of what he had felt earlier today.

The mere fact that a presence had appeared that he didn't know was what bothered him. There shouldn't be anybody here he didn't know, let alone anyone who could've hidden themselves from him. But they had, after suddenly appearing from nowhere. He had then felt that presence at the mall. That implied the person was moving. But then they had vanished again.

'It was supposed to be simple. Get into the game, stop said game, stop game master, free Sekirei, leave. But no, the universe just had to throw in an unknown variable.'

He got up and started waking through the yard.

'What else could go wrong?'

His thoughts were derailed when one of the windows to the second story of Izumo Inn was shattered and Uzume came flying out in nothing more then a bath towel. She flipped around and landed on the fence with the grace of a fighter and Dante sighed when her towel slipped off, revealing her breasts to the world.

'Of course.'

Uzume noticed him looking at her and gave a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank goodness. I think I already know the answer but I just have to ask. Are you Musubi's Ashikabi?"

"Yes, I am." Dante answered, not at all surprised that the girl already knew the term used to describe the partner to Sekireis in this 'game' as Minaka called it. He had known what she was before he had ever landed in this universe.

"I take it she's the reason your jumping out of the window in nothing more then a bath towel?" Dante let his eyes gaze at the busty young woman, taking in her form. She easily rivaled Musubi in the bust department, and had the same lithe waist and toned thighs and hips that his Sekirei had. In fact, were it not for the general difference in facial structure, eye color, and her hair, Uzume could have been Musubi's sister.

It was a shame she was a Sekirei and already had an Ashikabi.

"Yeah, listen, I don't want to fight anyone and that includes her." Uzume jumped down and ran to his side. Wrapping her arms around his neck Uzume pressed herself against him, her large bust pressing into his back and allowing Dante to feel her nipples as they were rubbed across his skin. She gave the teen a sultry, pleading look and asked, "Can you please make her stop?"

"First off, good try, but seduction hasn't worked on me in years. Second, yes I'll stop her, I was planning to anyways."

Musubi appeared by the shattered remains of the window. She peered out, her head tilting as she searched for something.

'Or more like someone,' Dante thought to himself as he glanced at Uzume. It didn't take long for Musubi to look down at the backyard and finally notice them. When she did her face set itself in a surprisingly stern expression.

"Hey! You let go of Dante right now!" The excitable girl shouted. Whether or not Uzume heeded her words seemed to be a moot point with the fist fighter, for not a moment after she spoke she he jumped out of the window and landed on the ground a few feet from the other Sekirei and Dante. Uzume hid herself behind Dante, while Akitsu, who had just followed them from the hall of the bath house, also jumped out of the window, though she was at least dressed in a towel.

Musubi charged forwards, fist cocked back to punch. She then felt several hits to points around her body and she suddenly couldn't move, feeling like a statue and Dante was standing behind her.

"Musubi, we don't attack our house mates for any reason. We also don't jump from a second story wearing nothing but a bath towel." Dante said firmly, walking in front of her.  
"But we were always taught to fight each other when we ran into another Sekirei." Musubi said in a tone that was more questioning than anything else. It was quite clear to all those gathered that she was confused by Dante's statement.

Frowning, Dante asked, "Who taught you that?"

"The professor of course."

Dante wasn't surprised, but he let the anger from the statement show slightly on his face.

"Dante?" Musubi asked, her face taking on a concerned expression, no doubt wondering if she had said something wrong.

"Musubi, I want you to listen to what I have to say," he said, then paused. Dante turned to Akitsu and gave her the same serious look he had given Musubi. "You too, Akitsu. This is something I feel you, no, all Sekireis should hear. Fighting for the sake of fighting is pointless, baseless and should never be condoned by anyone no matter the circumstances. There is only two reasons someone should ever fight, and that is in self defense, or protecting."

"The only time fighting can ever be justified is when you are protecting something important to you," he continued on with his previous train of thought, the one he had been intending on imparting onto the three before him. "Whether that something is a person, a place, an object, or even an ideal. Protecting that which you hold close to your heart, the things that are precious to you, is the only time combat can be justified. And it's the only time when your true strength will come out."

"What do you mean by true strength?" asked Uzume, getting just as into his words as his Sekirei were. There was something about the way Dante spoke, the way he talked about his beliefs with such conviction and passion that it was hard not to get caught up in his words. Maybe it was the tone in his voice, the way it possessed such passion, such an unbending will and belief that he was right. Or it could have been his eyes, intense orbs that seemed to be smoldering in flames that told her to listen to the hybrid's words. She didn't know, and a part of her didn't even care.

Whatever the case was, Uzume found herself listening to him as he spoke.

"It's simple. Over the years, I've learned one truth. True strength only comes when you are protecting something that is precious to you."

He pressed the preasure points around Musubi's body again, allowing her to move again.  
"Dante." Musubi sniffed, wiping tears from her eyes with her arm. "That was so beautiful. From now on, I will follow your words and fight only to protect the thing that is most dear to my heart. I will protect Dante with my dying breath."

Dante shook his head. "No. Not till your dying breath. Too many people die that way. If you want to fight for my sake, then fine. But don't die for me. Understand?"

She nodded and he hugged her, sending some positive feelings through the link which she accepted happily.

"You won't be protecting anybody being so indecently exposed," came the voice of Miya. Dante and the others all turned their heads to see the woman walking out of the house and down to the gravel of the small courtyard. She gave Akitsu, Musubi, and Uzume the look, that dangerous look that all woman learn at some point in their lives and spoke of inflicting great pain on the recipient of that look. Normally it was a look that wives directed at their husbands, or mothers at their sons.

Once again that aura of dread appeared around her, the very air was thick with malicious intent as the area around the lavenderette seemed to darken as if there was a small solar eclipse happening just around Miya and nowhere else. Then it happened. Even Dante could not suppress a small shudder when it appeared, a hannya mask, the kind used in Japanese Noh theatre to represent a jealous female demon or serpent. It crawled out from behind Miya's deceptively delicate frame, a mask of hatred that seemed to pierce your very soul. The fact that she had a pleasant smile on her face just made the look that much more creepy. "You three shouldn't be exposing yourselves in such a manner, I expect all of you to get dressed. Understood?"

Akitsu, Musubi, and Uzume all hid behind Dante, crowding around his back as they held onto him and each other for comfort in the face of such malevolence. The timelord hybrid turned his head and looked at the three with a raised eyebrow. Able to see no more than the top of their heads, he turned back to look at Miya whose hannya mask was still hanging out behind her.

"Don't worry about a thing, Miya! I'll make sure they put some clothes on," he reassured her with a smile. While the mask itself was scary, no doubts about that, Dante had experienced far worse. One couldn't help but admire her technique, and it would definitely be a useful skill when he apparently wanted to reinforce his will on someone else and not saturate them with his own impressive killing intent. He had used it a few times before.  
Miya blinked at Dante, surprised that he seemed completely unaffected by her hannya mask and malicious aura. It was very slight, only a small stiffening of the spine that anyone other than someone like him would miss. It was just one more piece of evidence that the kind landlady who had taken him and Musubi in was far more than met the eye, but he knew that already.

"See to it that they do." She said in a voice that was somehow both cheerful and solemn. Giving one more glance to the three girls hiding behind Dante, the hannya mask disappeared and she turned around to walk back inside.

Before Dante could turn and talk to the Sekirei further, there was a knock at the door.

"I'll get it." Dante said, going back inside and walking down the hall to the front door, which knocked again. He pulled open the door and was greeted by an odd sight.

A dark haired teen was supporting a woman who was clearly drunk, since the teen was supporting her heavily.

"Hi, I'm sorry to bother you so late, but my...girlfriend got us kicked out of our apartment and I wondering if we could spend the night here."

Dante rose an eyebrow. The story sounded the exact same as his story, but he figured some people truly had that happen.

"Uh, I might be able to help you, but I'm not the landlord. Can you wait while I get her please?"

"Sure."

Dante turned back around and called, "Miya, we have visitors."

He heard her quietly padding down the hall until she arrived and spotting the pair, "Hello, can I..." She stopped dead when she spotted the woman and her eyes just barely widened. "Kazehana?"

The woman mumbled something and lifted her head, looking through slightly blurry eyes and her cheeks red, clearly drunk.

"Heyyyy Miya." She said slurringly. "Hoowww are you?"

"How much did you drink?" Miya asked her in her dangerously sweet voice, twice in the past few minutes.

"Nnnooootttt much. I just had some to celebrate..." She said thoughtfully.

"You had fifteen bottles of sake. How are you even conscious?" The teen asked skeptically.

"I'm sorry, what was your name?" Dante asked politely.

"Tobais." The teen said, holding a hand out to shake Dante's.

"Pleasure." Dante said, holding out his hand.  
Tobais reached out with his free hand and Dante shook it. As they did, a beeping sounded from his wrist. A beeping Dante recognized.

"Sorry, that's my watch." Tobais said quickly, trying to pull his wrist back, but Dante didn't let go. Tobais tried again, but Dante's grip had turned to steel as had his eyes.

"Dude, let go." Tobais said angerly, eyes seemingly glowing in the low light.

Dante grabbed Tobais's sleeve and yanked it up, revealing his braclet, which was flashing green in the screen with every beep.

"Where did you get this?" He said lowly.

"I said, let...go!"

Tobias moved his fingers into a claw shape, compressing the air there into a super dense orb the size of a marble. He then launched it, expecting to hit Dante on the wrist and force him to let go.

Instead he was surprised was Dante grabbed the marble before it hit, which shouldn't be possible since, despite being dense, it was still clear.

"You have a wrist made TARDIS, a Sekirei, and air manipulation abilities. I'll repeat, who are you?"

Tobais's eyes went wide. "You know what this is?"

Dante looked over the device. "It's well made, components look about...51st century. Made to look like a vortex manipulator, but this little compartment, it's made to be an access point to the interior, holding all the necessary bits and pieces, being bigger on the inside."

Tobias narrowed his eyes. "You're well informed. And you seem to have something on your wrist as well."

Tobias twisted his wrist out and grabbed Dante's, yanking the sleeve up to reveal the Ultramatrix. At the sight of it, Tobais's eyes widened.

"No way. That's...that's the Ultramtrix."

Dante growled and threw a punch at Tobais's head, only to hit something like a brick wall before it could connect.

The next thing they knew, both of them had been hit on the head, hard.

"Ow!" They both shouted, grabbing their heads. "Who the hell...!?"

They were rewarded with another hit. As they both rubbed their heads, they both felt some ominous aura filling the air.

"Boys..." The two heard in a sickly sweet voice. Both froze and slowly turned their heads to see Miya holding a ladle and smiling pleasantly, making it even more terrifying with a space of blackness behind her. Out of the blackness slowly came the hannya mask, smiling evilly.

"I do not tolerate violence at my inn." She said.

"Sorry Miya." Dante said, having gotten over his shock while Tobias, who was not used to anything like this, was looking slightly pale.

Miya frowned slightly. Dante still wasn't being affected by her hannya mask. That shouldn't be possible.

"Now, can you take it down before Tobias passes out from shock?"

Tobias snapped out of his trance and glared at Dante. He suddenly felt something akin to a smack to the back of the head, despite nobody moving.

"I'm not that delicate time-" He started to growl, but Dante quickly covered his mouth.

"Tell you what? You come in, then you and I sit down, and have a very, long, talk. If that's ok with you Miya." He adressed her politely, still not bothered by the mask which she reluctantly disspelled before smiling pleasantly.

"It's quite fine. As I've said before, I don't turn away those in need."

"Thank you very much." Tobias said gratefully, grunting as he moved forwards carrying the heavy and drunk Kazehana, who had passed out two minutes ago.

"I can take her and put her in one of the spare rooms to rest if you want." Miya offered.

"Yes please." Tobias grunted, feeling like she was somehow getting heavier.

Miya took Kazehana's easily and lifted her up, causing her hair to shift just enough for Dante to catch of glimps of a Sekirei crest, making him raise an eyebrow. Miya then took the drunk woman and carried her towards the rooms, leaving Dante and Tobias alone.

The two of them sized each other up for a minute, before Tobias said, "So, shall we talk?"

"Give me a minute, then yes, we're talking." Dante said. He pointed down the hall and said, "Third door on the left. Wait in there."

Tobias watched Dante walk down the hall before he moved down the hall, going through the door that had been specified. He walked into a well furnished room and closed the door behind him before looking around. The room was homey, but it felt new, like it hadn't been lived in very long.

Tobias decided to not sit and instead concentrated for a second before jumping up, crossing his legs, and falling, stopping just before he hit the ground, then slowly raising up, He was now floating 4 feet above the ground, sitting in a meditation pose while watching the door.

After telling Musubi and Akitsu he would be talking with someone for a few minutes and asking them to stay out of the room while he did, Dante headed to their room and slid open the door, stopping when he spotted Tobias.

"Really? You couldn't just take a seat on the couch? You had to just float there?" He asked sarcasticly as he closed the door behind him.

"Hey, couch might be comfortable, but nothing's quite as comfortable as a bed of air." Tobias shot back.

Dante walked to the couch and sat down, Tobias lowering himself to be eye level with him as he did. They stared at each other for a few minutes before Dante decided to start.

"So, how long have you been in town?"

Tobias shrugged. "About 18 hours. Not my intention to come here at all."

"Hhmm. Might have to do with that makeshift TARDIS on your wrist." Dante noted.

"This thing?" Tobias snorted, looking at it. "Not mine. I was doing a friend a favor I owed her."

"Her?"

Tobias smirked. "Yes her. She told me a lot about you too. Dante Price, savior of universes, fighter for justice, companion of the Doctor."

Dante wasn't liking this situation more and more by the minute. He leaned forwards and said, "Tell me. This friend of yours, she have a name?"

"Well, she has a few names. Would you like her real one, assumed one, or one of her titles?" Tobias asked, milking this. He knew Dante well enough and he was going to enjoy his reaction.

"Real name."

Tobias smiled. "Melody Pond."

Dante's reaction was interesting. He nodded his head slowly and leaned back on the couch, tapping his fingers slowly. Then he said tightly, "Melody Pond?"

"Yep."

"I swear, one of these days, I am going to strangle that woman."

"Good luck with that, because she's quick and deadly with a stun gun. As I can unfortunately attest to." Tobias didn't seem to notice himself rubbing his chest as he said this.

"Ok, let's talk about you then." Dante leaned forwards. "What race are you?"

"Human."

"Age."

"19."

"Year of residence?"

"51st century."

"Planet of birth?"

Here, Tobias hesitated slightly. "I don't know."

Dante rose an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, I don't know." Tobias sighed, rubbing his eyes. "Ok, let me just say this, I know you, you don't know me. I know what you've done, you don't know what I've done. I know you're life, you don't know mine. So, let's agree to this. I'll tell you my little secrets in time, in exchange, I don't pry into yours. Deal?"

Dante considered the teen before him. A teen from the 51st century, friend of River Song, and apparently knew all about him, but was asking he respected his privacy for a while.

"Fine. At least tell me how you got a wrist TARDIS and a Sekirei."

"The TARDIS is a favor. River has been working on this thing for a long time and she needed to test it. I offered to, but something went wrong, and here I am."

"Hhmm. And your Sekirei, what's her name?"

"Kazehana. But can you please enlighten me on what a Sekirei and Ashikabi is, she wasn't very helpful before she then decided to 'celebrate.'"

Dante sighed. "Hope you're comfortable. This is going to take a while."

So for the next half hour, Dante described the universe they were in, the relations between Sekrei and Ashibiki, and finally the Sekrei Plan.

Tobias accepted it all pretty well, surprising Dante until he said, "I've been with River for a fairly long time. Considering what she's told me in her years and what I've seen, what don't you believe with proof?"

"Hhmm. That saves time. I..." Dante stopped as his phone buzzed. He pulled out the phone, looked at it after navigating the menus, and his eyes narrowed.

"Damn him!" Dante snarled, getting up from the couch. "I swear, I'm going to find that man when this is done and throw him into a black hole!" He growled, going to the closet and pulling out a duffel bag.

"What's wrong?" Tobias asked, letting his bed of air dissipate and landing on his feet before he hit the ground.

"Look at this." The hybrid threw the phone at Tobias and he caught it easily, looking at the screen, which had a text reading: _Attention all Ashikabi. Beginning tonight is the race for the Green Girl. Head to the Botanical Gardens to claim your prize. Signed: The Gamemaster._

"The Green Girl? What's the Green Girl? WHOA!" Tobias said as he saw Dante was pulling weapons from the duffle bag, including two swords, armor of some sort, and a few shirukens. "Where the hell did that come from?"

"I never leave home without a dimensionally transcendental duffle bag full of weapons."  
Tobais just went with it. "Ok, but what's the Green Girl? And who are you talkng about chucking into a black hole?"

"The Green Girl, it's Kusano, she's a Sekrikei, a little girl with the ability to grow plants. Sekirei have this, uh, this ability. When they're reacting to an Ashikabi they can't get to, they can send you dreams, appear in visions."

"Ok."

"The problem is that Sekirei can be winged by another Ashikabi that they don't react to, forcibly winging and bonding them."

"And that's bad?"

"Very. And now that bastard Minaka's gone off and turned her into some kind of prize."

"What are you going to do?" Tobias asked, fiddling with the hatch on his bracelet.

"Going after her. If another Ashikabi gets to her, they'll wing her forcibly and I'm not going to let that happen."

Dante zipped back up the bag and picked it up, heading for the door. "You stay here."

He suddenly felt like his limbs had been locked in cement for a second, then his strength made it so he felt like he was moving through syrup.

"No way in hell am I staying here." Tobias said, walking past him.

"You don't have a weapon to use. Now granted, if you can slow me down this much that's a strong control you have, but without a weapon against Sekirei..."

"Don't worry about that, I got it covered." Tobais said, tuning to look at Dante. "Now, either you let me come with, or I follow you regardless. Either way, I am coming to save her as well."

Dante sighed. He could argue, but that would waste precious time, and they had little enough of that as it was.

"Fine."

Dante walked past and walked out the door calling, "Musubi, Akitsu, get your stuff! We're going on a trip!"


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

"You weren't kidding when you told me this place was a jungle." Tobais told Dante, looking over the scene below them.

It was night now. Minutes after Dante had received the text declaring the claim for 'the Green Girl', he and his Sekirei, along with Tobais, had left the inn, only pausing long enough to tell Miya they would be out for a few hours and not to wait up for them.

Dante, Musubi, and Akitsu had run along the roof tops, Dante showing surprising agility considering he was carrying a bag on his back, Musubi and Akitsu keeping up with ease. Tobais had taken a more showy approach, somehow running through the air with ease, jumping and moving rapidly while not needing to touch roof tops once.

Now they were standing on top of a roof over looking the Botanical Gardens which was looking more like a jungle, and which were surrounded with MBI trucks and soilders.

"And you need to give me some basics on your powers if you're coming with us. What can you do?" Dante asked tensely, looking over the set up MBI had set up.

"I can control any air within a 300 feet radius, manipulate how I want, I can make vacuums or super compress it to run on, and I can also use wind attacks." Tobais rattled off.

"Neat!" Musubi cried happily.

"Sshh!" Dante hissed, pressing a hand to her lips. "We don't need them to hear us right now."

"Sorry." She mumbled.

"It's fine." He removed his hand from Musubi's mouth and dropped the duffel bag, unzipping it quickly.

"Why did you bring that anyways?" Tobais asked.

"Ah." Atsuki said quietly. "I was wondering that as well."

"I rarely go into fights unarmed. Brought this just in case." Dante said as he started pulling out armor and strapping on the pieces.

After a few minutes, he was all set up.

"Dude, that armor is over kill." Tobais snorted.

"Is not."

Dante was now dressed up in gold and crimson armor, the arm bands, chest guard, and leg guards all done in gold, while the helmet was black and face mask done crimson not the bottom. There was a crimson hood over the head that extended out into a cape of sorts that was divided into several strips. Underneath the guards was what looked like knights' shirt and chain mail. Over his hands were clawed metal gloves, which moved and flexed soundlessly as he moved his own hands. On his hips was a leather belt that had two plain swords in there sheaths plus a few pouches across the hip.

"If that is not overkill, then my name isn't Tobais and I can't manipulate the wind." He dead panned.

"Hey, don't diss the armor. And I don't see you having anything to fight with."

"Sorry, but you're wrong. Hang on."  
Tobais opened the compartment on his wrist band and reached in, apparently shifting through it.

"Where are you...?" Tobais muttered, while from inside several things apparently hit toghther inside.

"River made it demensionally transcendent enough to store things other then the needed bits?" Dante asked.

"Yep. Again, to test it, I offered some of my stuff, including...aha! Got you."

Tobias pulled on something inside and his hand slowly moving out inch by inch until what he had grabbed was out.

He was holding a sword, currently in a sheath, but the sheath was an interesting design. It was pitch black, and eteched with silver all around, the lines flowing toghther and coiling like the air flowing. The handle was the same color and design.

"Do I want to know where you got that?" Dante asked while Tobais pulled a belt from inside his gauntlet before closing the latch.

"Not sure exactly. When River found me, I already had it. The only thing we know about this sword is that is extremely durable, sharp, and it enhances my wind abilities. Plus the sheath seemed to be made of zero drawf star alloy." He explained.

"What the hell!? I don't have a weapon made of that stuff, how do you!?" Dante cried before he suddenly felt the air in his mouth thicken, making it impossible to talk.

"I thought you said we had to be quite." Tobais snapped, buckeling his sword to the belt.

"Sorry." Dante said after he could speak again.

"Ok, so what's the plan?" Tobais asked after a sword was secured.

"Alright, you said you can control the air in a 300 feet radius?"

"Yes."

"Good. What I want you to do is knock out the guards, take the air from their space until their unconscious, then..."

Dante heard a crackle behind them and looked back to see a large fire ball flying towards them.

"Look out!" Tobais shouted, raising his hand as the wind suddenly blasted from his palm and colliding with the fireball, snuffing it out with ease.

"Impressive. Not many can snuff out my flames." A males voice noted  
Before turning, Dante applie the face mask to his helmet in which the system that was built inside his suit come to life. It showed his vitals, and went through several different modes before settling to normal view.

**"Most people can't throw fireballs."** Dante said. Thanks to a voice alter in his mask, his voice was made deeper and indistinguishable from his own as he looked up at their attacker.

"Well, I'm not most people." The person in question was tall and lean, like an athlete, dressed in all black, including a mask covering his mouth and nose, leaving the top half of his head bare. The top half was showing off silver hair and familiar eyes.

'He really needs a better disguse.' Dante thought idily. 'Anyone with half a brain can tell that's...'

"Kagari?" Musubi cried, surprised.

'I rest my case.'

"Kagari" instantly looked shocked and stuttered out, "W-w-what?!"

Tobais leaned in. "Who's Kargari?"

**"Housemate actually. I'll explain later."** Dante whispered back just as Musubi started talking again.

"Oh, wait, never mind. Kagari doesn't wear a mask. My bad." Musubi said, knuckling her head and sticking her tounge out. Everyone sweat dropped, except for Akitsu and Tobias.

"A-anyway, are you here for number 108?" 'Kagari' asked, getting back his cold demeanor.

**"No. We're here to rescue Kusano. She reacted to me, not the other way around."** Dante told him, stepping forwards.

'Kagari' narrowed his eyes. "She reacted? And how do I know you're not lying?"  
"What would we gain from lying about this?" Tobias asked. "She's a little girl, not property or a damn prize to be won. Also, What was your name?"

"Hourma, Defender of Unwinged Sekeriki." He responded, jumping down to the same roof top as them.

**"I am Azrael. Angel of Death and Defender of the Innocent." **Dante said, while Tobias facepalmed and muttered, "River was right, you are melodramatic."

"What do you..."

Hourma's question was cut off by an explosion just then, the shockwave catching everyone off guard. They all rushed to see the blockade from earlier was now something out of a war. The guards were now all lying on the ground, either dead or wounded, while the trucks had been reduced to piles of scrap.

Dante turned to Hourma. "**Listen, you may not trust us. You threw a fireball at us, so we don't trust you. But whoever did this are not afraid to use force, and if they're here for Kusano, then you ask yourself this. Do you want her forcibly winged to someone like that, or will you help us in rescuing her?"**

Hourma was silent for a few second, thinking this through before he said, "I'll help you. But only this once."

**"Done. Let's go."**

They all jumped off the roof, landing on the ground silently except for Dante, who's armor rattled quietly as he hit. They all started running for the entrance to the gardens, until Tobias stopped and knelt next to one of the trucks, picking up a peice of metal.

**"Tobias, come on!"** Dante shouted over his shoulder, stopping.

"We might have a problem." Tobias responded while holding out the bit of metal.

Dante grabbed it then pressed a button that was inserted into his gauntlet which caused the vision in his helmet to go into "detective mode". He looked over the metal for a few seconds then said, **"You're right. These edges, they're too straight for any sort of regular blade. This looks like the cut of..."**

"A vacuum blade. You create a vacuum blade, suddenly you have a blade that can slice through any normal or tempered steel." Tobias said.

**"And you know this..."**

"I have power over air. I've practiced all my life. I can make vacuum blades as well." Tobais replied, getting up and starting to run again, Dante following as he tossed the metal over his shoulder. In seconds they had caught up with the others and were deep in the 'forest.' They kept going until Dante stopped dead in his tracks as he looked up into the trees.

"What's wrong?" Hourma asked.

**"Two Sekirei. One on the left, the other right. Just right above us."**

"I got this." Tobias told them, stepping forwards. He pulled back for hands until they were the same height and distance as his shoulders, palms out before he thrust them out, a gale of wind blasting from both palms and going through the trees to the right, blowing the branches wildly.

"What the hell!?" They heard a girls voice cry.

The air around them dropped in tempature as Akitsu began forming ice on the ground while Musubi started jumping in excitement.

Dante then felt a sharp pain in his head as he heard a cry of "BIG BROTHER!" ring throughout his head, causing him to jerk violently. Homura looked over at him and asked, "You alright?"

**"She's in trouble. You, Musubi and Akitsu deal with these two, Tobias and I will go for her." **

Before he could respond, Dante turned and pulled out a grappling gun which he used to blast himself upwards. Once he got on a tree branch, he let his strength show by pushing off it, cracking the branch, making it splinter and fall.

"What the hell!?" He heard Hourma cry in shock, but he paid it no mind as he leaped from branch to branch moving towards the center of the garden, each branch being blown off with ease.

"Wait up!"

Dante looked his shoulder to see Tobias trying to catch up, doing something similar to Dante but he was just jumping on air instead of branches. In seconds he was caught up.

"How far are we from Kusano?"

**"A few minutes. But she's with another Sekirei."**

"I'll take her out, you comfort Kusano and get her out." Tobias told him firmly.

**"Yeah, I don't think that'll work."**

"Huh? Why not?" He asked, sounding confused.

**"Let's stop for a second."**

The two stopped, Dante on a branch and Tobias in the air.

"So?"

**"Well, look at me."** Dante said spreading his arms out. **"I don't think Ku will recognize me in this. In fact this would just scare her. So I'll take out the Sekirei and you tend to Ku. Got it?"**

Tobias recognized the logic and nodded.

**"One more thing. We're going to be doing this stealthily. So keep out of sight until I make the first move." **

The wind user nodded again and they both started going again. But in a few minutes they stopped again as Dante said, **"Wait. I'm getting more readings coming from our left and heading towards us."**

Tobias cocked his head, listening as he heard a male voice shout, "Hurry up! We've wasted enough time already!"

In which two female voices replied, "Don't tell us what to do!" Followed by what sounded like a bolt hitting someone.

Tobias turned pale.

"Oh please don't let that be them."

The bushes down below were pushed aside as the two lightning twins, both looking irritated while the male voice shouted after them, "I can't win without you two can I?!"

"No!" They both shouted back. "Now hurry up!"

The guy grumbled as he came from the bushes. He looked in his mid twenties with ragged brown hair and a scraggly beard.

Tobias clenched his fingers. Those two were a pain in the ass and if they were here for Ku, then they would be a problem.

"Dante, give me a minute and I'll take care of them."

Not waiting for an answer, Tobias dropped like a stone and hit the ground crouching as he shouted, "Hey!"

The group tensed and spun around, the twins getting into a battle stance, but when they saw who it was, they paused.

"Hey! You're that guy we kept chasing!" One of them shouted, pointing at him.

"And you're the twins that wouldn't leave me the hell alone. Why are you here?" Tobias growled.

"Whoa,whoa,whoa. Let's calm down, shall we?" The guy with them said, making hand gestures to calm down. "Let's start with some introductions. Who are you?"

"Tobias."

"Nice to me you. I'm Seo. These are my Sekirei, Hikari and Hibiki."

"Nice to see you two again." Tobias said sarcasticly. "Now answer, what are you doing here?"

"Why should we answer?" Hibiki demanded, lighting starting to spark across her hands.

**"Because if you don't,"** a voice started before the owner dropped down and flexed his gauntlet causing a blade to extend from it and ignited in fire, **"I'll have to beat it out of you."**

"Who are you?!" The other twin demanded, powering up her lightning.

**"A concerned citizen. Now answer, or Tobias here can suck the air from your lungs and let you choke to death."**

Tobias started making the air around them thinner to make sure the point got across, making them slightly lightheaded.

Seo stepped forwards. "We're here because we got a text. Something about a race for the Green Girl, and if you two are here, you got the text as well."

"Sharp. You must be these two's Ashikabi." Tobias noted.

The scraggly beard man grinned. "Yep."

"Any particular reason they kept going for me?"

Seo shrruged. "They always go after Unwinged Sekreiki. I can't get them to listen to me."

The mention of 'Unwinged Sekeriki' reminded Dante why they were here in the first place. The hybrid then retracted his blade and said, **"Tobias, we need to go. Don't kill them."**

"Got it." He raised his left hand and pointed it at them, palm out. "Vacuum bombs."

His hand started glowing green slightly before 6 orbs of green light fired from his hand and hit the ground around the group. As each one hit, they exploded. Or rather imploded. The air was sucked from around it, and with so many surrounding them, the air was sucked from their lungs making the group instantly winded and falling to the ground in a heap, gasping for air. The two of them turned, jumped on to more branches and started 'running' again with a renewed sense of urgency, leaving the group behind as Dante kept using his strength to blow off branches.

In a few minutes they heard a harsh female voice shout, "Stop kicking me you brat!"

Dante and Tobias stopped quietly, Dante turning and making hand signs to his friend. They sneaked forward silently, the armored hybrid shooting another grapple into the air which made his branch shake as he made his way to another while Tobais avoided any stray leaves.

"No! Let me go!" A little girls voice cried.

Dante pushed aside a branch and looked out at the scene. It was a small clearing with Kusano being pulled roughly from a tree by another. This one had brown hair and eyes, wearing a black gown with matching gloves and stockings. Around her neck she tied a red ribbon. She was also holding a scythe, which looked thin and long, but it was clearly stronger then it looked.

"You know, I was supposed to bring you in unharmed, but I won't hesitate to cut you up a little." She grinned sickly. Dante growled and looked to the side to see Tobias looking at him through the branches, nodding he was ready. Dante held up three fingers then counted down.

'3,2,1, now!'

Dante burst from his hiding spot and glided towards the sycthe weilder. She turned at the sound just in time for him to deliver a right cross to her cheek, causing it to flex and bend under the force before she went flying backwards, hitting a tree and making an indent in it before falling to the ground.

Tobias moved swiftly, moving from his spot and getting to Kusano quickly. He gently picked her up and said soothingly, "Hello there. Come on, let's get you away from her." The Green Girl was too scared do anything then nodded and grab handfuls of Tobais's hoodie as he summonsed some wind and jumped off through the trees again.

Dante ignored this is favor of the girl as she picked herself up, not looking too hurt as she snarled.

"You idiot! Now I'm going to need to hunt her down again!"

**"Sorry but Sekirei hunting season is over for you."**

"And who's going to stop me? You? Good luck with that!"

The girl swung her sycthe at Dante and from it came a glowing blade, flying towards him. He leaned back, dodging it with inches to spare, and he saw as it missed and hit the trees behind him, which sliced it through like a hot knife through butter.

"My wind blades can slice through anything with ease. They'll cut through that stupid armor of yours!" She shouted as she swung her scythe widly, sending a wind blade from all directions at him. Dante dodged the first few but as the rest came towards him, to close and to many to dodge without moving, he shot another grapple upwards, going twenty feet up and clearing the wind blades with ease as he landed on a tree branch.

**"You have impressive powers, but you don't use them well. Let me show you how to properly use blades."**

Dante drew both his swords, which ignited on fire. One blade covered in red flames and the other in blue flames.

**"These are the Swords of Sin and Salvation. Let's see what they do to you." **Dante jumped towards her as she sent more wind blades at him, but each time one got close he would swing his own swords and cut each on clean in half. Once he hit the ground, he ran towards her, blurring out for a second until he was close enough to swing at her. She blocked with her sycthe handle, leaving them at a standstill.

"You're not a Sekirei! How can you keep up?!"

**"I have more experience then you can possible imagine. You have no chance of winning."**

The girl snarled. "I'm Number 43 Yomi. I'm won't lose to you!"

Dante didn't bother responding. He broke the standstill and started swinging both swords at high speed, weaving a web of blue and red light with his speed. Yomi was barely able to keep up, and even if she did block and cut, she winced and was pushed back an inch from the force of every swing. She couldn't even get in her own attacks.

Dante slowly started pushing her back, moving farther and farther from the center of the clearing and his swings were getting harder and faster. He was starting to fracture the bones in Yomi's arms and legs while the scythe handle was starting to crack and chip. Finally, Yomi's scythe was knocked aside and Dante spun on heel, kicking her in the ribs and pushing her back into a tree, where she slumped, panting and sweating in exhaustion. Dante slowly stalked forwards, the flames of both swords licking the air, making him truly look like an angel of death.

Yomi started trembling so much she looked like she was suffering from frostbite.

"What are you?" She whimpered. This guy had destroyed her without even trying. Her powers had been useless, and this guy wasn't even a Sekirei. But he was too strong to be human.

**"I'm what this city needs, but what it doesn't deserve."** Dante said in a monotone before lifting both swords above his head. Yomi closed her eyes as she heard both of them slice through the air and waited to die.

Only she didn't. She felt two light cuts in her arms before she felt a burning sensation that forced her eyes open to look. Both arms had a long shallow cut, barely deeper then a paper cut, but they were caturized as well, leaving a long line of dark brown.

Yomi looked back up at Dante only to see her vision starting to blur. Then slowly, instead of seeing a man clad in armor, she saw a hooded figure with two swords of fire. She then started to see faces of people, other Sekirei, all of them screaming in agony. All of them wailing, screaming, crying in agony and pain. But the worst part was, Yomi knew why she had done each and every one of these things, and she had no lies to comfort herself with. She felt a pressure start building in her chest and her heart beating harder and harder, faster and faster until she couldn't tell one beat from the next. Finally, it was all too much and she blacked out, falling into a bottomless pit of blackness.

Dante lightly nicked both of Yomi's arms with his swords, the cuts caturizing as he did before sheathing the swords. Yomi looked confused as she looked up at him before her eyes started glazing over and her breath began getting shallower and quicker.

The swords of Sin and Salvation were a deadly combo. The Sword of Sin forced those who had been cut by it to see all the wrongs they had ever done, while the Sword of Salvation would force them to see the truth of matters they thought of. Combined, the two swords made those cut by them to see all their sins and the truth behind those sins.

Yomi started screaming, curling in on herself and clutching her head, screaming at such a high pitch it hurt Dante's ears and so loud it echoed while tears started running down her cheeks. The software in the mask scanned her body and informed him that she was starting to enter cardiac arrest, her heart beating far too fast. It also picked up an abnormality. There was a unusual amount of activity in her blood stream, too much metal that was actively moving. And all of it was concentrating on her back, which was starting to glow. Dante quickly checked it to see her crest was glowing before it faded away, leaving smooth skin and Yomi silent as she was deactivated, leaving her in a near death coma.

Dante moved away from Yomi, thinking quickly. 'Metal in the blood stream that was moving actively? I'm going to need to study this, might give me a clue into the crest and it's function.'

The hybrid timelord heard something moving through the forest and looked to his right, switching to infrared vision to see through the trees. 4 people were approaching, three of them looking like Sekirei, one human. He moved quickly, grabbing a cube less then a fourth of an inch on every side from a pocket on his armor and switching it on. The cube blinked once before it started humming very slightly, too low for anyone not listening for it to hear. Dante knelt down and opened Yomi's mouth, putting the cube in and closing her mouth again before standing.

The group got close enough for him to hear them talking.

"What the hell was that screaming?!" One of the twins demanded.

"I don't know, but it wasn't natural. And did you see that guy go? He blew those tree branches clean off." Seo noted.

"I just hope they didn't get themselves killed." Hourma said.

The bushes rustled and the group came out, looking around quickly before spotting Dante, but Yomi was hidden from view by him.

"What the hell happened here?" Hibiki asked in awe, looking around the clearing which was covered in trenches and trees cut down from the vacuum blades while some patches were smoldering and black from Dante's swords.

"Where's Number 108?" Hourma asked worridly.

**"She's fine. I had Tobias take her away before the battle started. In fact..."** Dante looked around and spotted two heat signatures approaching through his infrared filter. **"...here they are now."**

The branches rustled before being pushed aside to let Tobais walked through, holding Ku in his arms who looked still looked slightly scared.

Tobias looked around and whistled. "Wow. You really cut lose didn't you pal?"

**"This? This was nothing, this was...a minor exercise. How's Ku?"**

"She's fine."

Ku was looking more nervous at all the people and tightened her hold onto Tobias's jacket.

Dante slowly approached and Ku slowly tightened her grip as he did, looking frightened. Taking a calculated risk, when he was close enough, he pulled back his hood and slowly took off his mask.

"Hello there Ku." Dante said with a smile.

Ku's eyes went wide. "Big brother?"

Dante was interested she insisted on calling him that, but he nodded. "It's me."

The lighting twins both had wide eyes and one of them pointed at him. "You! You're the one who blasted us when we were chasing that Sekirei!"

The hybrid glared at them. "You mind? In the middle of something here."

Ku scrambled form Tobias arms and ran to Dante, who knelt down as she threw herself at him in a hug, which he returned.

"You came!" Ku cried softly.

"Said I would. And I don't break my promises." He whispered to her softly, stroking her hair to calm her down.

Hourma was watching with what looked like a calm face while inside he felt like he had been sucker punched. His new room mate was someone who clearly had training of some sort under his belt and was incredibly strong if...

"Wait, where's Yomi?!" He said harshly. Dante jerked his head towards her, not stopping in calming Ku down. Hourma moved quickly around him but stopped dead when he spotted and saw the state Yomi was in. Everyone else moved to see and the Sekeriki and Seo to got wide eyes, looking between Dante and Yomi. This went on for a half a minute before Hourma said slowly, "You...beat her?"

Dante nodded and Hourma looked back at Yomi. On the surface she had some bruises, what looked like two brown lines on her arms, and...tear tracks on her face?

Dante then noticed Ku had grown quite and her grip was slightly slack. He looked to see she had fallen asleep clutching him, breathing in and out gently.

"She must be exhausted from all of this. Tobias." He turned from Yomi as Dante picked up Ku in his arms, holding her carefully. "Let's go." He started walking back to the entrance, Tobias behind him.

"Wait. What do you plan to do with Number 108?" Hourma sked sharply, turning to face them.

Dante stopped and looked over his shoulder. "For one, give her a place to sleep and something to eat. The rest though, that'll be up to her."

"You're not going to wing her?" Seo asked, surprised.

"If she doesn't want me to, then no, I don't plan to. If that's all..." Dante took a minute to put his mask back on before going on. **"...we must be going."**

"Good night. And you two..." Tobias glared at the twins, who tensed slightly.

"Stop hunting Unwinged Sekrei. Or I'll show you how terrifying my powers can be."

With that, they both turned, and walked away throught the woods, leaving the group behind.

After a few minutes of walking throught he woods, they started coming up on the gate, which was even more trashed then it had been before.

"Jeez." Tobias looked around. "How are people not aware of the Sekrei plan if this happens when they fight?"

**"People see what they want to see. If they want things to be normal, then they see things as normal."**

"Fair point."

"Dante! Tobias!"

Dante and Tobias turned, and Tobias blushed and kept on turning. Musubi and Akitsu were walking towards them slowly, the fist type Sekirei waving happily at them. Just one problem.

"Musubi, what happened to your clothes?" Tobias asked, not looking at her. And for good reason, since she had no shirt or bra whatsoever on, leaving on arm across her chest.

"Oh, they got torn durning my fight. But I protected my modesty Dante!" She said, pumping a fist.

He was honestly surprised she remembered that talk, but now wasn't the time for it.

**"How did the fights go?"**

"Ah," Akitsu said. "Fine."

"I was completely outclassed!" Musubi declared happily. Dante frowned. He didn't se any wounds on Musubi besides some scraps and a bruise or two, but if what she said was true, he would need to remedy that.

**"Hhmm. We'll talk about this later. Right now we need to pick up my duffle bag and get Ku home."**

Musubi noticed Ku and squeled with delight. "She's so cute!"

"She's asleep. Quite!" Tobias snapped slightly.

"Oops." Musubi knuckled her head and stuck her tounge out. "Sorry." She whispered.

Dante shook his head and said, **"Come on guys. Time to call it a night."**

They all walked away from the forest that was the gardens, fading silently into the night.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"I forgot how much I hate late nights." Tobias yawned as they walked up the walk to the front of Izumo Inn. Dante had thought ahead and included in his duffle bag a shirt for Musubi so she was now decent and had put away his armor in it before giving it to Tobias, taking Ku, and giving her a piggyback ride so she could rest easily.

"Really? If you've been with River you'd think you'd have built up some stamina." Dante noted as they got to the door.

"Most of it goes towards my powers. Using them in large amounts at a time drains me, so yes, I have high stamina, but my powers suck it up like a sponge. Plus I'm just not a late night person." Tobias added as an after thought as he shifted the duffle bag on his shoulder.

"Hhmm. Interesting." Dante opened the door and they instantly ran into Miya, who was standing in the front hall as they went in. She looked surprised for a second, looked at them, then turned and stalked down the hall. Everyone looked confused until she came back with her katana in hand and a coldly angry look in her face.

"Uh, Miya, what are you doing?" Tobias asked, but she ignored him. When she was close enough, she drew her blade and put the tip of it on Dante's throat.

Tobias tensed and the air around them seemed to grow thicker and then colder as Akitsu started using her powers as well.

"Can I ask the reason of why you're holding a sword to my throat Miya?" Dante asked conversationally while motioning for his friends to stop using their powers.

"A very good reson." Miya said in the universal tone all woman had that made most people think, 'Oh crap.'

"I thought you were better then to stoop so low as to kidnap someone, Dante. But it appears I was mistaken. You do know that kidnapping is one of the highest offenses that can be committed? And that committing said act results in the harshest of punishments? Don't you?"

"Kidnapping?" Dante blinked several times. He tossed the word around a few times in his head, wondering what the hell Miya meant. He blinked, his eyes going from the sword to Kusano, then back to the sword. Suddenly his eyes gained a glint of understanding.

"You think he kidnapped Ku?" Tobias asked, surprised.

"What else could this possibly be, if not a kidnapping?" He tone made it clear the question was rhetorical.

"How about..."

**GURGLE**

Everyone blinked at the sudden and unexpected sound that caused the building to shake slightly and echoed down the hall like the roar of a monster.

"What the hel-heck was that?" Tobias asked, changing his sentence halfway.

**GURGLE**

The sound came again and they could tell the source was close. Dante thought it sounded familer, but he could not, to save his life, remember what it sounded like.

**GURGLE**

"So hungry..." The girl on Dante's back mumbled in her sleep, just loud enough to hear before that sound came again. He now recognized the sound, it ws the sound Musubi's stomach made when she ws hungry.

He prayed on the time vortex the little girl did not have the same black hole of a stomach.

"She must've been in that forest for a long time." Tobias noted.

Dante gave Miya a sheepish smiled. "Any chance we could get Ku something to eat before we tell you what happened? I promise, we'll tell you everything then."

Miya blinked, her menacing stance dissolving into confusion as she said, "Huh?"

_1 hour later_

"I see," Miya said as she sipped a steaming cup of tea. After the incident in the hall, Dante had convinced her that they would be better off moving their conversation into the dining room where they could also fix up something to eat for Kusano. Miya was sitting at her usual place at the head of the table, while Dante sat on her left hand side, Akitsu on his right as she stared at him with her usual intensity and Kusano sitting in between him and Musubi on his left. The only people who were missing was Kagari, who Dante assumed was either in his room or patrolling the streets while doing his duty as the 'Guardian of Unwinged Sekirei', Uzume, who he had no clue as to her whereabouts, and Tobias, who had went to bed before the others had left to talk.

The purple haired had listen to Dante's story, with a few minor details taken out, such as Dante's armor, how he he'd defeated Yomi, where Tobias had come from, and the other Sekirei and Ashibiki they had met. He knew Miya knew about the Sekirei Plan, in fact, he knew she was a Sekirei, but out of respect for her he didn't push into her private business.

Miya tapped her chin as she took in the sight of the little girl stuffing her face. It was a drastic change from just moments ago, before the food had been placed in front of her Kusano had looked like she was dead on her feet. "So this girl was responsible for creating the overgrowth of plants in the Arboretum," she said, looking at the girl appraisingly before turning to eye Dante. "And you, Musubi, Akitsu, and Tobias went there to rescue her. Am I getting this right?"

"That's about it." Dante confirmed, scratching his head as he looked at Kusano. She was busy eating several times her body weight in food with enough speed to make even Dante feel a little sick at the sight. It was a drastic change from before, where the girl had looked dead on her feet.

'If all Sekerei have an appetite like that, it's a good thing I can afford it.' He thought.

"Hmm..." Dante sweat dropped as Miya stared at him with a discernible expression on her face. She leaned over, so close her nose was nearly touching his as she looked into his eyes with frightening intensity. The hybrid said nothing, however, letting the purple-haired beauty search for whatever it was she was looking for. She seemed to find it after a few seconds of staring, because only a moment had passed before she pulled away from him and smiled. "I believe you."

"You do?" Dante asked with a raised eyebrow. He was, in all honesty, not surprised. He knew that Miya was aware of the Sekirei Plan at least to some degree, Dante had not said anything when it happened but he had seen the way Miya had glanced at Kusano when they first arrived. The first place she had looked was the back of her neck. Still, if Miya wanted to play her games than he would play along with her. If nothing else, it would be a nice change of pace to have someone with whom he could banter back and forth with. Musubi wasn't much of a conversationalist unless it came to combat and love. And, well, Akitsu was Akitsu. Nuff said.

"Of course," Miya's bright smile was rather radiant as she spoke, so unlike her scary smile where her hannya mask would appear around her person. He still needed to show her his killing intent illusion. "I'm very good at telling when someone is lying to me, so I know that everything you've said is the truth."

"Well that's good," Dante said with a laugh. His left hand came up and went behind his head, scratched it. "For a second there I was afraid you were going to point your katana at me again, or even worse, actually use it on me to cut me into tiny pieces."

"Oh no, I wouldn't do that," Miya said with a bright smile. Her eyes closed as her lips curled into a wide smile that looked very beautiful on her face. The air around the lavenderette began to darken as a malicious aura appeared around her, making the beautiful smile seem more sinister. "I would only cut you up if you deserved it."

"Ah, ahahaha, that's... good to know," Dante said with a sweat drop. He wondered what it was with him and violent women. Why was it that he always found himself surrounded by that type of female?

_"Because you traveled with the Doctor and his luck rubbed off on you."_ A logical voice said inside him.

"Good point." He muttered before he spoke up again. "So, will it be ok if Kusano and Tobias stay here?"

"I don't see why not. She doesn't seem to have anywhere to go, and if you saved her, she'll be very attached to you. As for Tobias, if you'd be willing to pay his rent, then yes, he'll be fine."

"Thank you." Dante grinned and with a bow of his head. He then picked up his chopsticks and started eating the food he had ignored while he talked with Miya. After a few minutes of eating, Dante heard the light sounds of footsteps in the hall before the doors slid open revealing Kagari. He looked like he ws still getting dressed, a few buttons on his white shirt, his jacket was over his arm, and his tie was loose. He was the perfect picture of someone in a rush.

The white hair man took in the room, looking at the occupants until he spotted Dante. He grimaced slightly and Dante, with a mischievous look in his eyes, winked slightly. Kagari turned to look at Kusano, then finally locked eyes with Miya.

"Miya, I'm going to be heading out, so you don't have to prepare anything for me." He told her as he fixed his tie and putting on his jacket.

"Oh? What's with the, uh, monkey suit then?" Dante asked, nodding at the suit.

"Something going on?"

"Nothing, just some late night work." Kagari passed off smoothly, but Dante had hundreds of years worth of experience in lying. Kagari was good, but he wasn't that good.

Miya nodded her head and said, "Well I hope you have a good night."

"Thanks. Good night." He said courteously before he closed the door. A few seconds later they heard the front door open and close.

Musubi turned to Naruto with a question on her mind. "Hey, Dante? What was all that about?"

"Just an adult conversation, Musubi. Nothing for you to worry about right for now." Dante sighed and withheld the urge to palm his face as Miya began giggling behind her hand. Honestly, he was beginning to seriously question Musubi's naivety. There had to be a limit on just how naïve and unknowledgable a person can be. None of the other Sekirei he had met were so naïve about the world.

"Oh, ok!" The girl seemed to accept his answer with the same ease she always did, and went back to her eating, polishing off what Dante recognized as her thirteen bowl of rice.

Sometime during the conversations taking place, Kusano had finished eating. The little girl, after scarfing down nearly three times her weight in food, completely ignored the other people as they spoke. Blinking, her eyes began to take on a drowsy quality, drooping and closing occasionally as she fought to stay awake. However, with all that had happened to her, the attack on her person as someone tried to force her into being their Sekirei via forced winging, creating the abnormal plant growth in the Arboretum, spending who knew how long inside of that place all alone and with no one to comfort her, and finally, the action that had accumulated her adventure before coming into the care of Dante had left her spent. Her eyes drooped even further down before she slumped over, her head hitting the table as her eyes closed a final time and sleep took her, head hitting the table with a light thump.

"I think the little dear is all tuckered out," Miya said as she noticed the young girl had fallen asleep. She placed her hands against her cheeks, smiling at how cute the young Sekirei looked. She was snoring contently, eyes closed and mouth partially opened with several grains of rice covering her cheeks. The spoon she had been using to eat with was still clutched tightly in her hand, only moving with each breath she let out. "Now that her stomach is full, she's probably exhausted."

"Right, in that case we should get her to bed," Dante commented, getting off his knees. He lifted the little girl into his arms, it was rather easy considering how light she was, like a feather.

"Yes, we should," Miya stood up as well, and after a few minutes both Akitsu and Musubi got to their feet too. "And since your room is rather crowded she can sleep with me. I've already laid out the bedsheets for her."

"Oh. Um, thank you."

"You're very welcome. Now, you three should probably turn in as well, you've had a long day."

Dante bowed to her. "Thank you. I appreciate everything you've done. As far as I'm concerned, you're the number one person in the world."

He then turned and left the room with his Sekirei, leaving Miya slightly confused and shocked.

Kagari couldn't help but sigh in relief as he left Maison Izumo. The cool night air seemed to soothe his inflamed body, something he was very grateful for, since the little event in the gardens earlier had made him slightly sore. Plus, he had come close to nearly combusting from shock when Dante had revealed his face.

He walked down one of the many streets near the boarding house he lived at, his long coat billowing slightly as he moved. It was dark out, with only the street lights to illuminate his path. It wasn't long before he reached his destination, a very expensive looking limousine that was parked by curb with only a single light on in the back. As if it was waiting for someone.

Walking over to it, Kagari stopped by the rear door that was facing the road. Opening it he leaned down and peered in to see the person who had called him, who also happened to be the woman helping him with his job as the guardian of unwinged Sekireis.

"A limousine, huh? This is a pretty classy way to greet a friend," he smirked at the woman, sitting with her right leg crossed over the left, a cigarette in her left hand. She was a slender women with grey hair and grey eyes. There was a long scar that traveled across her left eye, which was being covered by a large, triangular eye patch. Currently, she was wearing an expensive purple dress, it was sleeveless with a thin neckline that acted as a choker and was connected with the rest of the dress, forming an X pattern as it moved across her chest and left a large rhombus like hole to show off her cleavage. The womans name was Sahashi Takami, and she was the person who had asked him to become the guardian of unwinged Sekirei.

"It's the least I could do," Takami replied with a smile. "You've missed a lot of work lately because of me." As Kagari stepped into the car and sat down, her gaze sharpened. "Do you think number one-hundred and eighty is safe with that man?"

"Safer then she would be with anyone else," was the reply she got.

Takami frowned, taking a drag of her cigarette before blowing out a stream of smoke. "You seem to have faith in this man," she looked back at her companion for the moment with a raised eyebrow and undisguised curiosity. "I thought you said you didn't trust him?"

"I said I don't know him," Kagari corrected. "The first time I met him was when he had winged Sekirei number eighty-eight, Musubi. I saw him doing things, acts of superhuman speed that shouldn't be possible for a human to do. Yet I also know he is human, a Sekirei can not be an Ashikabi, so that makes it the only viable explanation. This also leaves me baffled and unable to come up with any theory on just how he is capable of such a feat. I don't like unknown variables."

"You never did." Takami agreed with a nod. Truth was she didn't like it either. The man was a ghost, he had appeared out of no where with no past, no history, no workers ID, nothing. Even his passports were unavailable, either missing or purposely stricken from the records she didn't know, but that she couldn't find out anything about this man was disturbing. "What about the other one? Tobias?" She asked.

"Good guy, but again powers and strength beyond human limits. Where you able to learn anything about him?"

"No, he's another ghost. But the interesting thing is he has no profile."

"You mean he just arrived in town?"

"No, I mean, he has no profile. I searched every possible data base we have access to, but there's nothing on him. No passports, no credit cards, no history. He doesn't exist."

Kagari leaned back as Takami took out a cellphone and scrolled through it before holding it out to him.

"This was caught on a camera about ten blocks north of the the inn, around 7 A.M."

Kagari took it and saw an average street, nobody out yet. Then the spark happened, once, twice, three times before there was a flash of light and a small crash. The entire scene played out, the clip ending when Tobias jumped out of the cameras range of view.

"What on earth?" Hourma whispered.

"My thoughts exactly. Whoever Tobias is, he has access to some technology we've never even heard off."

Kagari handed back the phone, thinking it over. "What's MBI planning to do about this?"

The woman shrruged. "Nothing. They've wanted to keep Tobias under surveillance, especially after he winged number 3, but since he's in the north district it's going to be hard."

"True. What about Dante?"

"Him we do have at least a profile on." She pulled it up and rattled off the information.

_Price, Dante_

_Age: 17_

_Home: New York City, New York_

_DOB: 7/13/95_

_Eye color: Brown_

_Hair color: Black_

_Height: 5' 8"_

_Weight: 110 lbs_

_Has currently winged two Sekirei, Number 88 Musubi, and the scrapped number, Number 7, Akitsu. Currently lives in Izumo Inn in north sector of the city._

"Sounds about right. He also has Kusano under his care, Though he hasn't winged her yet," Kagari pointed out. "I suspect that he won't wing her unless she's the one who decides she wants to be winged by him, even though she did react to him."

"Is that so?" said Takami, shifting her body around to face him as a look of interest appeared on her features.

"This night when I was trying to keep people away from number one hundred and eight, I ran into Tobias, Dante, and his Sekirei," he admitted. Takami raised an eyebrow in interest. "I almost roasted them with a fireball, but Tobias snuffed out my fireball like a birthday candle. We probably would have stayed in a stalemate had it not been for Mikogami's Sekirei blowing up the front gate to go after Kusano." He paused to let Takami absorb the information he had given her.

"Go on," the woman prodded.

"We ended up teaming up after that. Eighty eight and seven stayed behind when we were ambushed by three of Mikogami's Sekirei, while Dante's group and I went into the Arboretum. While there, Dante told me that he had known about Kusano being hidden inside of the forest before Minaka had sent his message. Apparently he'd had a dream about her before hand, and had already planned on rescuing her. The message just sped up his plans."

"I see."

That was a very unusual but not unexpected way for a Sekirei to reach out to their Ashikabi. When a Sekirei could feel who their Ashikabi was, but was incapable of, or perhaps didn't want to reach out to the person they were destined to be with, their desire to be winged would often manifest itself in dreams along with the usual heat they felt when in the presence of their Ashikabi.

"What else do you know about Dante and Tobias?"

"Not much," Kagari admitted. Seeing the look of disbelief the woman gave him caused the young man to hold up his hands, as if to defend himself from her assault. "Dante's a very... reclusive person." Once again he was given that 'are you fucking kidding me' look that Takami had perfected.

It was a look she had perfected thanks to her dealings with that idiot of a game master, Minaka Hirito.

"Actually, maybe not reclusive so much as quiet about his past. Aside from a few stories about his travels, which really don't tell us much at all except that he traveled a lot before coming to Japan, I know almost nothing of his past. Who he is, where he comes from, what he did before coming here, whenever the subject comes up he somehow manages to dodge the question, answering it without really answering it."

"So what your saying is you know next to nothing about him." Takami sighed. That was disappointing. This new player to the game had caught a lot of attention when he winged the 'broken Sekirei' and not just from her and MBI. A lot of other Ashikabi's had found out about this miracle winging, as well as a lot of Sekireis. It wouldn't surprise her if the man soon found himself on the receiving end of a lot of unwanted attention, Tobias as well for his powers and winging of number 3.

Or wanted attention, depending on the kind of men they were and whether they ended up dealing with an Ashikabi or an unwinged Sekirei.

"Well, I do know one thing about him that you may find interesting."

Takami leaned forward as if trying to keep their conversation from being overheard, even though they were the only two people in the car. "What do you know?" she asked eagerly, hoping to receive any scrap of knowledge she could on the elusive duo.

"Before we started fighting the two Sekirei at the front gate, Dante seemed to get some sort of message. I don't know what it was, I assume Kusano reaching out for him, but Dante and Tobias ran out of there. But the problem was how Dante did it."

"What do you mean?"

"Dante went jumping through the trees, but each branch he leapt off of was blown clean off. It looked like someone set a stick of dynamite on the branch and set it off."

Takami's eye went wide. "How is that possible?"

"I don't know, but we found a branch like that every twenty to thirty feet. That implies massive leg power and stamina. But that's not the really worrisome thing."

"What else?"

"We tracked Dante and Tobias to the clearing where Kusano had been hiding.

She had been fine, apparently Tobias had grabbed her before the other Sekreiki could and Dante had stayed behind."

"Number 43 Yomi." Takami nodded. "I know, we had a team pick her up after she was deactivated..."

Takami trailed off. Kagari wasn't surprised, she had always been very good at putting the pieces toghther and she knew what his story was implying as her eyes widened.

"That's impossible." She shook her head in denial. "What you're implying is completely impossible, there is no way a human can defeat a Sekirei!"

"Takami, I understand that you don't want to believe this," Kagari started, and he really did understand. A human defeating a Sekirei? The very notion was absurd. While Kagari didn't look down on humans, especially considering his Ashikabi, if he ever got one,would be a human, the fact remained that Sekirei were more powerful than humans. He didn't want to believe that a human could fight a Sekirei and win, but what else could he do in this instance.

"No!" Takami snapped, the denial and anger in her voice surprising Kagari. "You don't understand, Kagari!" she shouted, using his real name instead of his alias.

"What?" Kagari blinked as Takami once more began pressing buttons on her phone, this time at a much more furious pace. "What don't I understand?"

"This!" Takami thrust the phone into Kagari's face. The fire user had to lean back, lest the tiny device smack him in the nose. Tentatively, he took the phone from the angry and slightly hysterical woman's hand, the pulled it away from his face so he could read it without going cross eyed. As he began reading the text, which Kagari noted was a list, his eyes began to widen.

"'Fractured bones in the arms and legs, fractured ribs, internal bleeding, hairline fracture in the left cheek, and aproximently one minute before deactivation, subject was displaying signs of cardiac arrest, cause seemingly being intense fright leading to mental breakdown. Also noted were cuts less then 3 millimeters deep but 20 millimeters long and cautirized.'" He read off before slowly turning and looking at Takami, who still looked agitated. "What is this?"

"That," Takami grimaced. "Is the reason Dante Price could not have defeated Yomi."

"You're saying this..."

"It was a level four deactivation." She said with a slight shudder, which Kagari shared. They went silent for a few minutes, absorbing the information they had learned.

Takami thought this through carefully. Firstly, there was a total of 8 Sekirei at the arboretum that night. Kagari, the lighting twins, Musubi, Atsuki, Yomi, and her backup. Then there was Tobias and Dante, plus the lighting twins Ashikabi Seo. All of them were there for number 108, but only Dante and Tobias had gotten to her in time to stop Yomi. She didn't have any proof of this, but she trusted Kagari's word until she could check MBI's database later this morning. God, was it morning already? If it turned out that Kagari had been correct, and Dante really was the only person there at the time of Yomi's demise, she'd have to accept he was telling the truth.

She still didn't like it. This human had come to the city only a few days ago, but had already winged two Sekirei, one of whom should have been impossible to, and top of that, defeated a Sekirei. That in particular irritated her. It slapped her research in the face, because they now had at least on person running around with the ability to fight and possibly even kill Sekirei. The fact he was also an Ashibiki only complicated the problem.

Tobias was another wild card. Since he had arrived they'd tracked him with the cameras set around the city and his powers were clearly developed and well controlled if he could be chased by the lightning twins and lose, if not beat, them. He had also winged a Sekirei, and a single number with air powers as well. The fact he had winged her meant he had to be human as well, but no human should have powers like that.

Takami drew on her cigarete, letting the nicotine sooth her nerves and calm the headache that was forming. There were too many unknown variables, and not enough constants.

After she ws calmed down, she turned her head to Kagari.

"Do you know how he managed to defeat number forty three?" she asked quietly, almost as if afraid that by asking she was admitting defeat.

"No," Kagari shook his head as he pulled out his own cigarete out and out it in his mouth. Holding his hand out in the shape of a gun, his index finger ignited so he could light his death stick. He took a long drag from it, hoping that the nicotine would help him calm down. "By the time we had arrived there the battle was already over." He would have mentioned the state of the battle site, but considering she had been there to pick up Yomi he was sure she had already seen the amount of destruction the fight had caused.

"I see," Takami sounded disappointed as she closed her eyes and took another drag of her cigarette. She was quiet for moment, lost contemplating everything she now knew. Eventually, however, she opened her eyes again and asked what would probably be one of the last questions she had for Kagari. "What else do you know about Dante?"

"He's smart, he seemed to know how to fight while making a stratgy on the fly. he also seems to have the strange ability to earn the trust of others." Already knowing that Takami would ask for an explanation he began elaborating. "It took only took a single meeting with him before Miya decided she could trust him. During the few times I've seen them together they look very comfortable in each others presence. Very comfortable."

That was another thing that bothered Kagari. Miya was a very kind woman, when she wasn't being scary. However, that didn't mean she trusted people out of hand, and certainly not within the first hour of meeting them. Yet in their first meeting, Dante had somehow gained the woman's trust.

'I see the ability to change fate.' That was what she had told him when he had asked her if she thought letting Dante stay with them was a good idea. Kagari had no clue what the woman meant by 'changing fate', but he himself was beginning to understand that there was more to that man than he had ever thought possible, and this was just enforced after Dante defeated Yomi.

"Lovers maybe?"

"God no." Kagari snorted. "You and I both know that Miya was in love with Takehito. She would never fall in love with another man so easily." Or at all.

"However, they are both very friendly with each other, and often joke around and converse with each other when neither of them are spending time with the others. Several times I've seen the two of them just sitting around sharing a cup of tea, just talking."

"He also has a very strong rapport with his Sekirei. Both Akitsu and Musubi are fiercely loyal to him. Dante seems to be the type of person who treats his bond with them as if he were in a relationship with them."

"Oh?" Takami raised a single, manicured eyebrow. This was an interesting piece of information. "You mean he treats them like they were his lovers?"

"Or his girlfriends," Kagari said with a shrug. "So far Dante has taken Musubi out shopping for clothes, and they have also gone out on walks. I know that he and Akitsu haven't done as much yet, but I'm pretty sure the reason is more due to the fact that he only winged her two days ago. However, he did take her shopping for clothes before this whole fiasco with number one hundred and eight started. Along with that he seems to be... affectionate towards them. It's not unusual to see him with one or both of them, usually in some form of physical contact..."

Kagari trailed off as he tried to think of other pieces of information he had learned that may be relevant. While he was doing that, Takami had already decided what else she wanted to know. "What about his personality?"

"His personality?" Kagari blinked. When Takami nodded, he said, "Friendly."

"I thought you said earlier he was reclusive."

"About his past. But other then that, he's friendly with everyone in the house, easy going, but sharp. He seems to be able to see more then he let's on, but he doesn't overstep privacy or personal boundaries."

"Hhmm. What about Tobias?"

"First impression is he's shut off. Not cold, just doesn't trust easily, though when he met Dante he seemed to know who he was, but Dante didn't. Despite that they seem to trust each other, my guess is a mutual friend they both trust. He's not as out going as Dante, but it might be the fact he just arrived and doesn't know anyone."

All of the information they had on the two teens was about their personality, but they had nothing on either of their pasts or why they came here. Both had been quite about them, but had powers beyond human limits. It came down to one question.

Who were Dante Price and Tobias?

"Do you trust them?" Takami asked suddenly, the question making the fire user blink in surprise.

"I..." Kagari paused. Did he trust Dante and Tobias? He would admit the teen seemed to be a good guy. Friendly, protective and confident. Charismatic. A natural leader in many aspects. Even Miya had taken a liking to him for some reason he couldn't fathom. Tobias seemed to be willing to help others, but at the same time wasn't stupid. He only helped for good reasons, cautious, but not cruel.

However...

"Not completely," Kagari said at last. "I trust that they're a good people, and I don't think we'll have anything to worry about as far as them becoming like Minaka or the two Ashikabi that have been known for forcibly wing Sekireis. But until I know more about either of them, I simply can't trust them." There were simply too many unknown variables surrounding the pair for him to trust them. Without knowing about their past, without knowing how they had been able to accomplish those feats he had seen last night, Kagari simply couldn't trust them.

"I see..." Takami sighed. There were a few moments of silence between the pair, neither willing to break it at the moment as they both got lost in thought.  
That silence was broken by a ring of Takami's cell phone. She picked it up and said, "Yeah, what is it?"

She frowned and leaned forwards. "Slow down, I can't understand...what?!"

Kagari jumped as Takami shouted, her eyes wide. "How!? When?!"

After a few seconds of hearing someone talking franticly on the phone, Takami said, "Is there any footage of when it happened? Send it."

She hung up and Kagari asked, "What's wrong?"

"Number 43's vanished."

"What?! When?!" Kagari asked shocked. He knew for a fact Yomi would have been in a secure MBI compound that had the most elaborate security in the planet. It would be easier to break into nuclear bunker a mile underground then in an MBI compound.

"They were just about to move her into an adjustment table when she apparently just vanished. They're sending me the video...got it." She said as her phone buzzed. Takami opened the video file enclosed and started playing it, holding the phone for Kagari to see as well.

The video ws apparently taking from an overhead security camera, since they were looking down at an observation table in a white, unmarked room. In the center on a hospital bed was Number 43, dressed in plain, white hospital gown and breathing gently. In the room itself, were two other men, both in white and one said, "Ok, we have everything. We need to move her to the reprogramming room now."

Both of them moved to start moving the bed when there was a light beeping.

Both men paused, confused.

"Is that your pager?" One asked the other.

"I turned it off."

Yomi's body then started glowing blue around the edges as a high pitch whining started building.

"Whoa, what's going on!?" One if them shouted panicked. The pitch built higher and the glow started spreading over Yomi's body quickly.

"Sound the alarm!" The other shouted, moving quickly to the side of Yomi's bed and reaching out to grab her arm. Just before he could the glow flashed once before winking out, with one crucial difference.

Yomi was no longer on the bed.

The video cut out then and both occupants of the car were speechless.

"What in the world was that?" Kagari asked in awe.

_Back at Izumo Inn_

Dante sighed as he looked out at the endless sky, stars decorating the heavens.  
It was late, or rather, early, about an 4 in the morning and an hour after Dante had told Miya the story of what had happened and he couldn't sleep no matter how hard he tried. So with no other option, he had left his room and went to the garden in back, lying down on the porch to look up at the sky to calm his mind.

His phone buzzed. He dug through for it and saw he had a text for an unregistered number. He opened it and smirked when he saw the message.

'_Teleportation breach in medical bay.'_

'Lets see what those bastards at MBI make of that.' He thought viscously as he put his phone away. 'Good Galifrey, I love my life.'

Dante then heard someone open the door behind him and a soft voice say, "Big brother?"

He looked 'up' to see Ku upside down, looking tired and a bit shy. He smiled.

"Hello there. What're you doing up?"

"I couldn't sleep."

"Me neither."

Ku walked and sat beside him as Dante sat up. They just sat there in the comfortable silence looking out at the garden.

"Don't you think it's beautiful." Dante suddenly asked.

"Huh? What is?"

"The sky. It's filled with stars and planets which you might not see again."  
Kusano looked at him confused. "What do you mean?

"Well planets come and go, stars perish. Matter disperses, coalesces, reforms into other patterns. Other worlds. And through this pattern of constant, violent change, we're only here for a split second of it. Only see an instant of the magnificante dance of creation."

Ku looked slightly uncomfortable and Dante said, "Sorry, just thinking aloud. You wanted to talk to me." It wasn't a question.

Kusano was quiet for a moment, her head tilted down slightly as her eyes looked from Naruto to the ground several times. Eventually, however, she did speak. "The tree, it felt big brother." She told him. "When he touched it. And when it did, Ku felt big brother through the tree. It told Ku that big brother was one with it, and it was one with big brother."

Dante was intrested in this. The tree she was talking about had to be the one he had gotten the vision of her through. The fact she had 'felt' it, implied she was able to tap the awareness of plants around her, which also implied telepathic connection with plants. But now wasn't the time for his curiousity. Something was coming he was not particularly looking forward to.

"Big brother..."

Dante turned his head, and blinked in surprise when he found a pair of forest green eyes inches from his own. A pair of tiny hands grabbed onto his face, cupping his cheeks.

"Big brother, will you..." Kusano paused, her eyes darting like a scared animal. Then she took a deep breath and plunged on. "Will big brother be Ku's Ashikabi?"

He didn't get a chance to respond, whether to accept or decline, because the moment Kusano finished speaking her face closed the distance between his own face. Lips pressed themselves against his own and the hybrids mind short circuited.

He was kissing a nine year old. It was a disturbing thought, granted, just about everyone was a child when compared to someone as ageless as him. That still didn't change the fact that a child was kissing him and it wa making him experience a new level of wrong.

The Sekirei crest on her back began to glow as she went into his mind, making the low level mental bond. Wings spread out from her back, glowing a bright and lively green, with each feather taking on the shape of large tree leaves arranged in the shape of angel could feel Kusano within him, he felt safe, secure, and happy in the knowledge that he had finally found her big brother. And just like with Musubi and Akitsu, he knew that these feelings, these emotions, were not his own.

With the release of her power via her winging, the backyard began to grow with new life. Dozens of flowers, beautiful, colorful flowers of several different varieties sprouting from the ground. A brilliant array of golds, oranges and purples plants that grew from small stocks to full grown flowers in seconds, their petals bursting open and showing off their beauty. It was a magnificent sight, one that Dante, someone who had a seen planets with plants that rivles these in color and life force, could not help but admire. Moments later the wings behind Kusano back disappeared as if they had never been there, leaving only the numerous blooming flowers to signify their passing.

Dante looked away from the beautiful display of flora, towards the young girl whose power created them. She was looking at him, her eyes displaying a surprising depth of emotions. Then she smiled, and he felt a smile of his own appear unbidden on his face.

Awkward or not, he couldn't really find it in himself to complain about his new Sekirei being a kid. She had reacted to him and he had rescued her, Kusano belonged with them. And that was all that mattered.

He just hoped they wouldn't have to kiss again until she was much older, and that River never, ever found out about this.

That woman was hell in high heels.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Tobias woke up the next morning on his side, facing the door and feeling unusually warm. Last night he had been tired to do anything other then take off his hoodie and shirt, leaving his chest bare, and collapsed on the bed, passing out in a instant.

'Why does my left arm feel numb?' He thought, when it was his right arm under him.

Tobias tried to move his left arm but couldn't. He then realized he felt something on his chest and looked down to see two hands resting on it.

He heard a mumble behind him and felt a draft across his ear. Tobias thought calmly, 'Turn around, don't freak out, don't freak out...'

Tobias slowly turned his head and was greeted by Kazehana's face, eyes closed and a content smile on face as she snuggled into his shoulder, a leg over his own.

'Ok, not the worst way to wake up. Still, personal space, and...wait. Why dont I feel any...clothes...'

Tobias's mind went blank.

'If there is any mercy in this universe, do not let her be what I think she is.'

Tobias slowly lifted his head up and saw he had been correct in what he felt.

Kazehana's body was pressed as close as physically possibly to his, and that was the problem.

Because while he was dressed, she...wasn't.

Tobias's nearly burst into flames as he saw Kazehana was as naked as the day she had been born, showing flawless smooth skin and curves that would make any female envious.

His first instinct was to scramble from the bed but the problem was Kazehana was clutching to him too tightly to do that, leaving him in a pleasurable, if unwanted, prison.

'Come on Tobias, you've gotten out of sticker situations. Think, think, think.' He thought quickly, trying to ignore the shivers currently going up his spine. He did not want anyone, especially Miya, walking in on this. That woman was just below River in terms of terror.

Tobias had an idea. It was just a matter of control. Concentrating, Tobias just slightly manipulated the air under his Sekirei's nose, making a draft. Her nose twitched, but otherwise she stayed still. He tried again, getting her to grumble slightly and twitch again. He went a little bit stronger, and this time she took one hand from him to run her nose. It was enough and Tobias rolled from the bed quickly, making a mattress underneath him to cushion his fall, breathing heavily.

'If I have to deal with every morning, I'm getting a separate room.' Tobias thought with a grumble as he slowly sat up on the bed of air. Kazehana was still lying there, but she now had a frown on her face and was reaching around the bed before grabbing his pillow and pulling it close to her, mumbling some unprintable stuff that made Tobias blush again.

'This is going to be a long day.' He thought with a sigh as he started getting dressed.

Dante was waking up in a similar situation with his Sekirei. After the winging of Ku, he had decided to go back to bed, and was now waking up in his current predicament.

Musubi was on his left side, clutching his arm between her breasts, wearing a thin shirt but no bra. Akitsu was on his right, resting her head on his shoulder, breathing in and out, sending chilled air over his skin, but he didn't mind. She was also wearing a thin shirt and, looking down, had her leg wrapped around his own, wearing no panties. Kusano was dressed in a night dress and she had chosen an interesting method of sleeping. She was curled on his chest like a cat, practically folding herself in half and sleeping contently.

'Mm. This is a new one. Let's see, how to get out...'

Dante tried to pry one arm from Musubi, but she just mumbled and held on tighter. Akitsu did the same. He sighed. This wouldn't be easy.

_10 minutes later_

'Ok, that ws hard.' Dante thought, wiping his brow. He had managed to get out of his trap of flesh without waking anyone up, but it had taken forever and there were several close calls. But now that he was freed, time to start the day.

Dante went to the dresser and pulled out his clothes for the day. A red t-shirt, blue jeans, a black hoodie and white Converse sneakers. He then left the room and closed the door behind him. He herd another door open and close and looked down the hall to see Tobias, black shirt like yesterday, but his face was really red.

"Good morning." Dante said, walking down the hall. Tobias turned quickly but relaxed when he saw it was Dante.

"Oh, hi, morning. How are you?" Tobias said, little out of breath.

"Fine. But from the sound of your voice, breath, and the fact I know Kazehana was set to sleep in this room, you had an interesting wake up call." Dante smirked.

Tobias said flatly, "No comment." But his face did turn slightly redder.

Dante chuckled and clapped the wind weirder on the shoulder. "Come on, let's go get something to eat."

They both walked down the hall towards the kitchen.

_Meanwhile_

Walking within the Arboretum was a figure, short of stature, nor taller then one-hundred and seven centimeters of height and maybe around forty-one kilograms in weight. The figure was male, with a lithe body that matched his small stature. He had white messy white hair with several large bangs that hung over his face and overshadowed his grey eyes. His outfit consisted of a white, long-sleeved shirt with a turtle neck collar. Wrapped around his torso were several black stripes that went over his shoulder and under his arms near his waistline, with one black stripe moving across his waist over his buttoned up shirt. He was wearing a pair of white shorts with a pouch attached to the strap, hanging off of his waist and bouncing on his knees with each step he took. A pair of grey boots with straps that buckled on either side and wrapped around in three different places, the sole, heel and the midstep finished off the ensemble.

He looked around at the overgrowth of plants, an unreadable expression on his face.

"You came here, didn't you Ku," he spoke softly to himself. He walked up to one of the many trees that had overgrown and stopped just a few inches from it, placed his hand on the tree and closed his eyes.

The place where his palm touched the tree began to glow, a strange aura overtook the Arboretum. Around his feet a circle of green light appeared, creating a radius that was about twice as wide as he was. It soon began to expand, spreading out like the ripple from a rock as it's tossed into a pond. Whenever the ripple left it's previous spot, the landscape changed.

To be more specific it died. With a creeping slowness the trees and plants that Kusano had caused to overgrow began to die, withering and decaying within seconds of the strange, green light touching them. It wasn't long after the young boy had worked his magic that everything within the Arboretum, every plant and tree was killed, leaving the place a barren husk of what it used to be, a lifeless graveyard that was marked only by the now ashen gray trees that surrounded the landscape.

'Ku... where are you?'

_Elsewhere_

Within a small enclosed space filled with large machinery and monitors, a young woman was typing away on a keyboard. This young woman had long red hair with side plaits and usually appeared unfashionably dressed, wearing detached sleeves that resembled a cheongsam and glasses. As she typed away on her keyboard, the screen she was looking at pulled up two files with the images of two certain men on each.

"Dante Price. Arrived a more then a week ago, has only been in Shinto Teito for a grand total of five days. Very little information is on him, no past work history or any history at all. Only information is a standard profile."

A giggle escaped her mouth as she thought about what this meant. He was a complete mystery to everyone.

And she just loved solving a good mystery.

"Despite being new to this city he has somehow managed to wing three Sekireis." She typed in a few more keys and the file on Dante was pushed off to the side, though still visible as it made way for three more files; those of Musubi's, Akitsu's and Kusano's. "Sekirei number eighty-eight, Musubi. Sekirei number one-hundred and eight, Kusano. And the most shocking of the trio, Sekirei number seven, Akitsu, the so called broken Sekirei."

This was part of the reason she was so intrigued by him. Dante had not only managed to wing three Sekireis within a five day time period, making him three for five, he also managed to wing someone that should have been impossible for anyone to wing. The emergence of Akitsu in the game had caused ripples of shock to spread out, not just to MBI who she knew from hacking into their database were completely baffled, but had also earned him the attention of many unwinged Sekirei. Many of the Sekirei who had yet to find an Ashikabi, herself included, had found themselves growing curious about the man who had managed to wing a scrapped number. There were also a number of Ashikabi who had no doubt heard of his feat as well, and she knew that things might begin getting very busy for one Dante Price.

On the other screen was a diffrent profile.

"Tobias. No last name available, but he's even more of a mystery. He arrived only yesterday, appearing out of nowhere ten blocks north of Izumo Inn."

She pulled up the video of Tobias's arrival and watched it to the end.

"Despite being human, as proved when he winged Number 3 Kazehana, he seems to have control over the air surrounding him, as proven later when he fought off numbers 11 and 12 Hikari and Hibiki with wind attacks. No doubt he will draw as much attention as Dante due to this."

She giggled again. A human with powers that his Sekirei had, this just kept getting better and better!

"They're so utterly fascinating! No wonder I can't keep my eyes off them."

"So I was thinking we could go out today." Dante brought up at breakfast as he finished his rice and set down his bowl.

Everyone was sitting around the table now. Miya at the head of the table, Musubi on her left and Tobias on her right. Dante was sitting between Musubi and Akitsu, Musubi eating like normal, a black hole sucking in everything, while Akitsu was eating at a much slower pace. Next to Akitsu was Kusano, eating the same was as Musubi.

On Tobias's side was himself, eating his meal quietly, and next to him was Kazehana, in her dress from yesterday, who was clearly nursing a hangover. Next to her was Uzume, dressed up in her normal get up. Kagari was absent for some reason.

"What did you have in mind?" Tobias asked, taking a sip of his tea, making a face as he did. Kazehana on the other hand was on her tenth cup, trying to burn off the hangover.

"I was thinking a movie outing, haven't gone for a long time, might be fun." Dante replied.

"A movie?"

"Yeah, I thought we could all go to the movie theater and watch a movie together." Dante sweat dropped when he saw that Musubi had a confused look on her face, left index finger placed below her lower lip and head tilted to the left as she stared at him with an owlish expression. "A movie is like those television shows we watch together, only longer and it's played on a much bigger screen." he deadpanned, and sighed when the proverbial light bulb lit up in the girls mind.

"Oh, I get it!" Musubi said excitedly, pounding a fist into the palm of her other hand. "That sounds so fun! We should definitely go!"

Dante grinned at the girl and stifled a chuckle. The hybrid had almost forgotten that Musubi had only been living outside of the labs for a few days. On top of that she was incredibly naïve and knew next to nothing about the world outside of the labs, so of course she wouldn't know what a movie was.

Shaking his head, Dante turned to look at his other two Sekirei. "What about you girls?" he asked. "Do you all want to go see a movie?"

"Oooh, oooh, Ku wants to go!" Kusano shouted as she raised her hand in the air and jumped up and down. She looked like a spring with her constant motion. "Take Ku with you!"

"Ah," Akitsu tilted her head, slowly pondering the question. "I would like to go too," she said with a nod.

Uzume thought for a minute then nodded. "Sounds fun."

Kazehana just nodded silently, holding her head. Tobias shrugged. Everyone turned to Miya, who calmly sipped her tea and looked thoughtful. After a second, she smiled and said, "It would be fine. Why not?"

Dante clapped his hands with a smile. "Guess it's decided then. I didn't choose a movie since I didn't know what everyone wanted, so let's finish, wash the dishes and go."

They did just that and left, though Dante and Tobias turned out to be the target of much jealousy and envy as they walked to the theater. Dante was in the center of his Sekirei, Musubi on his right, Akitsu on his left, and both of them holding his arms while Kusano was riding on his shoulders. Tobias was in a similar situation, where Kazehana was hanging off his arm and looking more aware and happy then earlier, her hangover almost gone. Uzume and Miya were hanging behind them, both of them noting the looks of lust and envy being directed to the two teens.

That was a thought that brought no end of amusement to Uzume as she spotted the many people they were walking passed. Nearly every single guy they went by seemed to be having a hard time not displaying their emotions like an open book. They also seemed to have a hard time determining which type of emotion to display. Envy at seeing the two surrounded by so many beautiful young women, or lust at seeing so many beautiful young women in the first place. Most of them seemed to settle on a mixture of both.

'Dante hasn't even been in the game for long and yet he already has three Sekireis,' she thought to herself as her eyes settled on the teen, who was saying something to Kusano about helping her grow a garden in the backyard. His words seemed to make the little Sekirei insanely happy as Uzume heard a cry of 'I love you, big brother' from the little blond girl. 'Granted, I can see why.'

And she could. Aside from his looks, which were admittedly exotic and handsome, not pretty boy handsome like Kagari, but a more rugged kind of attractiveness, he was also very easy to get along with. The people he met just seemed to be naturally drawn to the man, even Miya seemed utterly taken in by his easy going personality! She would use the moth to a flame analogy but didn't really feel that it could truly describe the Ashikabis ability properly. There was just something about him that made others want to befriend him. She couldn't put her finger on it but...

'If I didn't already have an Ashikabi I probably would have bonded to him as well,' she thought to herself. Not that she was unhappy, while she was hurt that she couldn't be with her Ashikabi everyday like Musubi and the others were, she loved her Ashikabi very dearly. At the same time she could unbiasedly see why Dante had managed to gather three Sekirei to him in such a short amount of time.

He truly was an impressive person.

Tobias was more quite, but he clearly cared for others and Kazehana, who looked happy. He also had powers that complimented hers. He was a good guy, he just didn't show it, but despite that, Uzume found herself liking him as a friend.

After arriving at the movie theater, the group had gotten into a small debate about what movie they should see. Tobias felt like seeing Now You See Me, Kazehana wanted to see Love Actually, and Uzume wanted to see that as well. Musubi and Kusano wanted to see the new Disney movie Frozen, Akitsu didn't particularly care. Miya used her hanya mask to get the group to and all try to agree to a film. Dante offered one as a compromise on all fronts.

Ten minutes later, they were sitting in a theather watching The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug. Miya and Uzume were sitting toghther on the far end, Tobias and Kazehana next, with Kazehana not letting go of Tobias's arm for the whole movie as she rested her head on his shoulder, but he surprisingly didn't complain. Akitsu sat on Dante's right side, Musubi his left and Kusano sat on his lap.

After the movie the group left the movie theather in high spirits.

"Not bad. Still not a big fan of The Lord of the Rings movies though." Tobias said.

"And that sir, is why you have no soul." Dante remarked.

Everyone talked about their favorite parts of the movie until Tobias suddenly stopped dead in the middle of the road, Dante doing the same as they both looked around.

"You feel that?" Dante asked.

"3 of them, right in front, roughly 40 feet away and closing." Tobias told him.

"What's wrong?" Musubi asked, confused.

"We've got company."

As Dante and Tobias searched, they spotted the people they had felt.

The people they were referring to were not that difficult to find, in fact, they were a remarkable contrast to everyone else around them, much like their group. There were three of them, the first one Dante took notice of was the man in the middle of the group. He was dressed in an a black and white very formal and expensive business suit, the kind used by rich executives of large corporations. He had dark hair cut to a moderate length, and it looked like it had been professional styled, and when combined with his outfit and glasses he gave them the impression of a secretary of some kind.

The other two were female. The first one was wearing a large brown cloak that covered her body completely, disguising both her appearance and gender, but Tobias and Dante could tell by the way she was walking was the gender she was.

The other was a young looking girl dressed in a white midriff baring no sleeved shirt and tie. She had on long dark gloves, and coming down from beneath her top were what appeared to be dark suspenders attached to black short shorts.

They were left with no more time to ponder the situation when the man stopped just a few meters from them. The two Sekirei that had been at his side stopped several feet behind him, perhaps a sign that he was not here to fight but merely talk? The business suited man didn't seem to have any intention of moving from that spot as he looked them over with a superior expression Dante would recognize anywhere. Many of his foes always wore it.

After studying him further, the man casually dismissed Dante to look at the others that were with him. Kusano shrank under the man's gaze, while Musubi merely looked at him curiously. When the man's eyes landed on Akitsu they narrowed, she was doing what she usually did, stare at Dante. The ice user was not even paying attention to him beyond the first glance she had given. When the man's eyes landed on Miya they frowned, then blinked. He didn't look quite sure what to make of the formally dressed beauty with the sword.

Kazehana he looked at catiously but he only showed irritation when looking at Tobias, who's face was kept blank.

Dante turned to the others and noted that Uzume had seemingly disappeared without a trace. He took Ku off his shoulders and handed her to Miya while Tobias shrugged off Kazehana. Dante told them, "Wait here, they seem like want to talk. Shall we?" He asked Tobias.

"After you."

They both started walking and stopped until they were 10 feet away from each other. The man looked them over for a minute more before smiling.

"Dante Price and Tobias I presume?"

Dante nodded. "Yes."

The man's smile widened. "It's a pleasure to meet you, though I must say I want expecting the Miracle Worker and Airbender to know each other."

"Miracle Worker and Airbender?" Dante said curiously, rolling the terms around in his head. Clearly the Airbender was Tobias's title, but Miracle Worker. That was interesting.

"I get my title, but what's with Dante's?" Tobias asked flatly.

"You mean you don't know?" The man seemed genuinely surprised before it gave way to amusement at their lack of knowledge. Dante was ready to beat the crap out of this guy and Tobias looked ready to choke him to death.

"Miracle Worker is the title given to the Ashikabi who had managed to give the scrapped number her wings." he explained in a lecturing tone that sounded like he was explaining something fundamental to a child. "Airbender was given to the Ashibaki who not only winged Number 3, but has power over air himself."

"Interesting. How do you know my 'title'? I haven't been very active in the game lately." Dante asked.

The man said with a derisive sniff. "My master, the Ashikabi of the East, Higa Izumi, is never wrong when it comes to gaining this kind of information. You are obviously the Miracle Worker and Airbender, even if you do not recognized the title. My master is very interested in meeting with you."

Tobias shifted slightly and asked, "If your master is so interested, why isn't he here now?"

The man stiffened in anger before relaxing. "My master is a busy man. You cannot expect him to go out of his way to meet you just because he wants to meet you."

He said this like it wasn't the most backwards and contradictory sentence they had ever heard.

"But how can he meet us if he's too busy to meet us?" Tobias asked in an innocently confused tone.

"Tch. Sounds like he's too much of a lazy bastard to get off his ass to do anything without having you and whoever else he has under his thumb to do the heavy lifting." Dante said while scratching the back of his ear. Tobias held out a fist and Dante bumped it, both smirking.

From the way the man's body visible stiffened, and the twitching of the man's left foot, he had caught the slight they had made against his way of speaking and wasn't quite pleased. It almost looked like he would forgo his 'no moving from this spot' position to rush them, but visibly held back. After taking a moment to regain his composure, which consisted of the man snorting derisively and pushing his glasses up his nose again, he spoke.

"My master has scheduled a time and place for this meeting," he said, and they were pleased to not the barely held back anger in his voice. "The meeting will be at noon next Saturday at Hyamaki Hospital." The man had apparently decided he'd had enough of dealing with the two, and was now trying to hurry this meeting along to a close. "It's not everyday that my master decides to meet with someone he doesn't know. I hope for your sake that you don't decide to snub my master's generosity." With that one last threat, the man turned to leave.

"Oh, can you tell your master something?" Tobias asked. The man turned and Tobias spoke.

"Try and use us and things aren't going to end well. If I wanted, I could strangle you three without lifting a finger." To get his point across Tobias made the air around the man and Sekirei noticeably thinner as they started having to take deeper breaths

"Besides, he's already using you like a tool. I guess you like being his man whore? No surprise that you look like it." Dante added in with a mischievous smirk.

The man snarled and both Sekirei moved to attack but Tobias thinned the air even more, causing them to stumble to the ground, breathing heavily.

"Don't try it." He snarled. After a minute he let the air return to normal and said, "Leave."

The man glared at them but had no choice to leave peacefully, The Sekirei following close behind.

After a minute, Tobias said, "Robin Williams? Seriously?"

"Too much?" Dante asked.

"No, no, it was good, nice jab."

"Thanks. Next one can be yours."

They both walked back to the group and Miya asked, "So how'd it go," pleasantly, like they were coming back from a friends.

"Swimmingly." Dante replied as they started walking back.

The group arrived home an hour later. The sun was still up so it wasn't quite time to start dinner yet. Dante planned on seeing if he could either help Miya with her cooking when she did, or hopefully take over kitchen duty for the day in order to be away from his Sekirei and everyone else so he could think about how to proceed. As they made the way up the walk Kazehana was smirking like she had some devious plan and it was making Tobias look nervous.

When they entered the boarding house, Dante noticed that Uzume's sandals were already resting off to the side of the front door. There was a loud bump coming from the dining room, followed by what sounded like shouting. Miya's head snapped in that direction as well. With a frown, he, Akitsu, Musubi, Miya, Tobias, and Kazehana, with Kusano on his shoulders, made his way into the dining room where they discovered an unusual scene.

Uzume was there, hands on her hips as she looked down at a pile of twitching clothes. It took Dante and Tobias to recognize the pile as Seo, mainly because it looked like he had face planted the ground. There was a large lump on his head that was distinctly recognizable as the results of physical violence. Seeing as to how Uzume was standing over him in an annoyed stance and the look on her face, she was most likely the culprit to the suspicious lump.

"Ow," Seo grunted as he pulled his face off the tatami mat and looked at Uzume with an annoyed twitch in his right eye. "Dammit, Uzume, I said I was sorry!" He winced as he touched the lump on his head. "Did you have to hit me so hard?" he asked with a whine.

"Of course I did," Uzume said, a very rare scowl on her face. Removing her arms from her hips, the star shirted Sekirei placed them under her bust. "Only my Ashikabi allowed to grope me like that," her eyes narrowed, "and you are most definitely not my Ashikabi."

That explained it. Dante had learned clearly that all Sekirei were dedicated to the Ashibaki completely, going by examples of his own Sekirei and some others he had seen.

"I already told you it was an accident," Seo grumbled in complain, tenderly poking the lump on his head and wincing each time. Dante found the small act of insanity amusing if nothing else.

"Right," Uzume drawled out, her voice so laden with sarcasm that it could not really be called sarcasm. "Let me guess, your hand slipped? No, wait, I know. You tripped over a bump on the tatami mat and your hand just happened to reach out and grope my tits!"

Seo looked like he was about to respond, his mouth halfway open, when he froze. In fact, the entire room had frozen over as the dark, malignant presence of malice and hatred slithered into the dining room. Uzume and Seo's heads turned, slowly, oh so slowly, to face the source of this evil, their movements almost mechanic. It looked like they were trying to fight this strange compulsion but couldn't. It was instinct, after all, to look into the face of a predator even though you knew you shouldn't.

Standing in the doorway, Miya looked at the pair with a beatific smile, her eyes crinkled shut. However, their eyes were not quite focused on the woman herself. Slithering out behind her, the clacking of wooden blocks, came the source of the corrupted presence. The purple hannya mask hissed at them, it's mouth open, tongue sticking out in a horrific display and it's eyes bleeding profusely.

Everyone was effected by the mask of terror to some degree or another. Akitsu had stiffened, her head turned away from the sight of supreme horror and the area around her began to fog over. Musubi had hidden herself behind Dante, her hands clutching the back of his shirt as she peeked over the edge of his shoulders and around Kusano to look at Miya. As for the Green Girl herself, she had hidden her face in Dante's hair and was clenching his hair so tightly he felt they might get ripped off his scalp. Tobias had simply paled slightly but looked otherwise unaffected, thought the paleness may have to do with the fact that Kazehana was holding onto his arm tightly, though he hadn't noticed it was in between her breasts as a result.

Uzume and Seo had the worst of it. Being the ones who Miya had her attention on, the two were faced to bear the full brunt of her mental torture. Seo had backed himself against the far wall, as far away from the lavender haired woman as he could manage, even then he was still trying to press himself further against the wall. While Uzume had not moved from her spot, her own reaction was just as pronounced. She was sitting on the ground, her knees drawn up to her chest as she rocked back and forth muttering, "Oh god, it's eyes are bleeding. I hate it when it's eyes are bleeding."

"Uzume," Miya spoke in that delightful voice that sent shivers down the spine and froze the heart cold. Uzume froze, like an animal that knew the predator had seen it but hoped against hope that if they would just remain still, it would overlook them. Unfortunately for her, that wasn't the case here. "The use of such crude language, especially in the presence of children is strictly forbidden at Izumo Inn."

Uzume said nothing, she looked like she was just a second away from needing a quadruple bypass soon due to her heart giving out. Fortunately that seemed to appease the vision of horror enough that it moved onto it's next victim, leaving the busty Sekirei to almost sag in relief.

"And you, Seo," Miya turned on the man, freezing him in his tracks. The way she said his name, drawing it out with a long suffering and disappointed sigh was almost as terrifying as the mask itself. Seo seemed to think so anyways, if the way his eyes darting about to search out an exit when she spoke was any indication. "It seems you need another reminder that lewd actions towards others are strictly forbidden at Maison Izumo." With the fringe bangs of her hair covering the upper half of her face in shadows, all Seo could see was the evil smile that peeled back the woman's lips. "Remember that while you are under this roof, you must always follow the rules. After all, you never know what might happen if you don't."

"S-S-Sure thing, Miya, ah, ahahaha, ahahahaha!" Seo stuttered and laughed the laugh of insanity. It was the kind of laugh someone had when they started to lose their mind, when their higher mental functions slowly eroded away, leaving nothing more than an empty husk. A vegetable.

"Fascinating."

Everyone blinked and looked to see Dante was looking at the mask mildly, having put Ku on Musubi's shoulders and moved towards the mask.

"I've only run across something similiar to this a handful of times, but I never tire of seeing the variety."

"Do you think River could perfect one?" Tobias asked, his color coming back but he was still unaware of the situation of his arm.

"Now that is a truly horrifying thought." Dante shuddered before going on. "In any case Miya, you could improve this."

Miya looked interested while everyone else, besides Tobias, was looking at Dante like he was nuts. *Cough* madman *cough*.

"Oh?"

"But nows not the time. Can you take it down before everyone here faints?"

Miya blinked and looked to see that a lot of them were starting to breath a little faster. In an instant the mask was gone like it was never there, letting everyone breath easily and Tobias noticed the situation of his arm. He blushed and tried to pull his arm out, but it didn't budge.

"Uh, you can let go now Kazehana."

Kazehana blinked and looked at them, noticing the position they were in. She smirked seductivly. "But I'm comfortable this way." She said in a childish tone, the pout on her face making her look more adorable. Tobias's face went redder and he glanced at Miya knowing she disliked these kinds of situations, but this times he seemed mysteriously oblivious to his predicament.

'You witch.' He thought. The one time he wanted that mask out and it's nowhere to be seen.

Seo in the meantime seemed to have recovered and pried himself from the wall.

"Hey kid, fancy seeing you here." He said cheerfully, missing the slight twitch from Dante's left eye. He hated it when people called him kid. While psychically he looked like a teenager, he had live 5 or more of this guys life times, depending on who you asked. Being called kid just irritated him.

"Seo," He greeted with forced civility. "I honestly didn't expect to meet you again, except for maybe on opposites sides of the Sekirei Plan."

"Ha!" The man barked out a laugh. "I wasn't expecting to see you two for a while either, much less here at Izumo Inn." He looked at Dante and Tobias, who was now practically are wrestling with Kazehana for her to let go of his arm, with a casual look of calculated indifference. "So I take it you winged the Green Girl then?" he asked, his eyes glancing over to where Kusano was only just now getting over her case of the jitters from Miya's fearsome technique. "Well," he shrugged before turning back to the 'teen', not even giving said person a chance to confirm or deny his question. "If you're stay long at Maison Izumo then that can't be a bad thing."

"Thanks, I guess," he replied easily. Getting his thoughts in order, the hybrid was quick to bring up a point he had been wondering about. "Seeing as how you managed to get into this house so easily, I can take it you're an acquaintance of Miss Miya's?"

"Miss Miya's?" Seo blinked, before laughing. He looked over at the lavenderette in both surprise and humor. "You actually let him call you Miss Miya?" he said, trying and failing not to laugh. In the end, the gruff looking Ashikabi ended up holding his gut as his body shook with mirthful laughter.

Dante could understand why he was laughing, if not like it. Miya held that air most people associated with those who were to be given the utmost respect, but Dante had never given any of the people he had known like that even a modicum of respect. At least, not in the way that most people did. Though like The Doctor, his "respect" seemed to make people pissed. Didn't know why.

"I can't believe she let you call her that!" Seo gasped, still in the throws of vengeful giggles. He seemed to have forgotten everything and everyone else in the face of this new and apparently hilarious development. "The shrew must be going soft!"

And just like that the man's speaking came to bite him in the ass. Or rather the front.

"Miya." Everyone froze at the sweet tone that Dante was using to adres the landlady. It ws similar to hers, but seemed more potent and concentrated to Seo, who had froze in mid laugh. "Permission to do something you might consider violent?"

Miya smiled back in her scary way. "Of course, go right ahead."

Dante smiled and turned to Seo, who had gone pale. "Seo, please stand up straight." his tone leaving no room for argument.

Seo stood up like a soilder at attention, wondering what hell he had brought on himself. He soon found out.

"Man check!" Dante spun on heel and slammed his right heel right in Seo's crotch, putting most of his considerable might into the kick.

The resulting shout of pain caused the buildings 5 blocks away to shake mildly.

"You know, I think I'm going to take back all those nice things I said about you," Seo told Dante bitterly as the person in question poured him a cup of tea and placed it in front of the man. He didn't even look at the cup as he grabbed it by the body and threw it back like it was alcohol and not a cup of tea. Dante just smiled at him.

"Perhaps you should let this be an abject lesson for you," Dante replied to the man's words mildly as he began pouring everyone else a cup of tea as well. When he finished setting everyone up, he poured himself a cup and sat down in his usual seat, opposite of the ragged man while Miya sat at the head like normal. Just like always Akitsu was sitting on his left, but she was staring at him with more intensity then normal, maybe due to what he had done ten minutes ago.

On his other side Kusano was sitting on his left, drinking a cup of orange juice through a straw instead of tea. She had already tried the beverage and decided she it was too 'yucky' for her tastes. The Green Girl was sitting in between him and Musubi, who was pouting at not being able to sit next to her Ashikabi. She had tried to claim the seat on his left, but somehow, just as the excitable girl in Shrine Maiden garb was about to sit down, Akitsu had appeared in the spot. The action had given Dante the sudden premonition that this particular issue of seating arrangements would be coming up with much more frequency.

Tobias, as(surprisingly) well as Kazehana(due to not wanting another hangover for about another day), was drinking some tea besides the green girl, though he was casting glances at Seo. After his 'lesson,' the man still had trouble moving and had a giant bag of ice resting on his crotch. He also still couldn't believe Dante had done that. And how freaking hysterical it had been.

Uzume was sitting at the end of the table. This would have surprised Dante, but he had correctly assumed that she simply didn't want to sit near Seo due to the whole 'breast groping' incident that had happened before their arrival. She had also almost died from asphyxiation laughing so hard when Seo had been taught the 'lesson.' In fact, she was still smirking and laughing occasionally.

"Oh yeah?" asked Seo with a sarcastic mutter and winced as he moved slightly. "And what lesson is that?"

Dante smiled innocently. "That Dante Price does not take kindly to people insulting those he actually respects." He replied before sipping his own cup of tea.

"I'll keep that in mind." Seo muttered while Miya sipped her tea again. She was touched to hear Dante actually say he respected her, and felt the same respect for him.

"So, tell me. How do you know Miss Miya?" Dante asked.

"Miss Miya..." the man looked like he was going to laugh again, but one look at Miya, whose smile went evil for just a second, had him thinking better of it. Seo shrugged as he turned his attention towards the blond. "I was actually friends with Takehito before he and Miya even met."

"You mean Miya's husband?" He asked. Tobias cocked an eyebrow. If he was going to be living here, good to know the history of the landlady.

"Yep." Seo began, a reminiscing smile forming on his face. "Takehito and I were good friends in college. He was one hell of an upperclassmen," the man admitted as he scratched the bottom side of his chin. "The guy was a fricken genius. Of course," the scruffy man continued. "He was also a demon whose soul had been rotted, and he was a research idiot who couldn't handle anything besides his profession."

"As opposed to being a lazy nobody who can't hold a job to save his life," Miya shot back with a placid smile that belied her irritation. She didn't seem to like the fact that her husbands supposed best friend was saying such things about him. "I believe being a research idiot as you call him is far better than being the scum of the earth." Dante noticed with slight humor that she didn't deny her husband having the soul of a demon, but he knew the story behind that.

Seo just laughed Miya's insults off as he turned back to Dante and became a bit more serious, his smile turning a touch nostalgic with a hint of melancholy. "Despite our difference he was someone even a person like myself could easily get along with. When he wasn't busy keeping his nose stuck in his job."

"Not to mention he was probably the only person who could actually stand Seo." Miya added with a soft giggle. Seo just rolled his eyes at the lavenderette. Dante decided there was definitely a story behind all of this. He would have liked to hear it, but didn't want to intrude on what was probably painful memories.

"He sounds like an incredible person." Tobias said. Dante agreed. This was really the first he had ever heard of Miya's late husband except for in passing but he had never brought it up, not only because he had no desire to reopen old wounds, but also because it really didn't matter to him. He knew most of her past anyways. Still, the news about the man she had married was interesting, plus it would help Tobias learn about the purple haired woman.

"Hmm," Miya hummed in agreement to Dante's words as she set her cup down. "My husband truly was an amazing person. He was always willing to help others when they were in trouble, never turning away a person in need." She placed a hand over her heart. "He is someone I will never regret knowing."

Dante found himself stretching his own chest and stopped, feeling the double heart beat underneath his own hand. How many times had he felt heart ache like she had? He didn't remember, maybe because he didn't want to.

"Although," Miya began again, gracefully hiding a smile behind the left sleeve of her kimono as she giggled lightly. "It does sadden me to know that my husband was forced to spend his time with scum like Seo even when we were together."

"Ouch," Seo muttered, though he seemed to take the insult with a grain of salt. To Dante, it looked like he had gotten so used to Miya making comments like this that he had gotten so used to it to the point where he simply shrugged the heavy words off. "Such harsh words, Miya," he whined. "Do you really hate me that much?"

"Of course not," Miya reassured him with a smile that was about as reassuring as a cat that had found a mouse within it's paw. "You may be the scum of the earth, can't hold a job to save your life, and only ever come to visit when you're running low on food, but you're still Takehito's best friend."

"She's good." Tobias stated, taking a sip of tea. He thought only river could insult someone like that but still tolerate them. Then it led to him thinking of what would happen if River and Miya ever meet. He shook his head forcibly to get rid of the extremely horrifying thoughts.

"Agreed." Kazehana and Uzume nodded.

Seo laughed a moment after he spoke. "Yeah well," the scruffy Ashikabi shrugged with exaggerated nonchalance. "Miya just loves to hate me."

"Really now," Miya huffed in obvious annoyance. It was an almost childish look, and went a long way to telling everyone just how easily this man was capable of riling the woman up. "There's no need to be so rude," she stated, though Seo just waved the words off, before turning his attention back to the two teens.

"To be honest, I'm actually kind of surprised to see you here," he commented. The words were almost casual, but Dante could detect the hint of sharpness to them. The look on his face, while still lazy, held a much more calculating glint to it than usual. The man was obviously much sharper than he let on.

"Why do you say that?" asked Dante, taking a sip of his tea.

"Oh you know," the man started. "It's just that with the way you've been going about everything I sorted of expected you to be in the thick things. I mean, you are the Miracle Worker and Airbender, after all."

Tobias and Dante frowned.

"That's the second time today we've been called that." Tobias said, setting down his cup of tea. "I didn't realize we were famous."

"Actually it makes sense." Dante said before Seo could speak. "The fact that I winged a broken number would definitely make me a person of intrest. The fact I've winged three in five days even more of intrest, especially to Unwinged Sekirei. You, you showed up, winged number 3, and on top of that have wind powers."

"Very few Ashikabi's know about your titles," Seo freely admitted with a shrug.

"In fact, I'm almost certain that I'm one of the only ones who do. However," a small, almost perverted grin spread across his face. "As you said, there seem to be a number of Unwinged Sekirei who know about you. After all," the scruffy Ashikabi leaned back as he continued. "They were the ones who gave you two the titles."

"Hhmm. Didn't know that tidbit." Dante said. If Unwinged Sekrei had given the titles, then a good number of Ashikabi would after more Sekirei were winged and they told their Ashikabi about them.

"You learned that from Hikari and Hibiki, didn't you?" Tobias said as he realized just how Seo had gained this information. "Your Sekirei have been hunting Unwinged Sekirei again, haven't they?" he accused, leaning forwards. "After I specifically told them not to."

As Tobias spoke those words, Dante was overcome with an intense feeling of... not quite anger, more like, disapproval. He just couldn't understand why this man was allowing his Sekirei to hunt down Unwinged Sekirei. It was wrong, to not allow a Sekirei a chance to find and be with their Ashikabi was an unforgivable crime. How could he not see that every Sekirei deserved a chance to find love? It... it…

It took him a moment to realize that these were not actually his feelings. Dante frowned, blinking. He shook his head and closed his eyes so as to better focus inward. He began shifting through the emotions he was feeling, the ones he recognized were not his own, following them to their source. And when he did, Dante was both surprised and not so surprised, feeling he should have expected it.

Musubi. She was the one feeling these emotions. Most people would think this odd, considering how simple the fist type Sekirei was, but Dante knew more then most people did, though he didn't quite understand what he did know. He was surprised though, that the link still sent the emotions of her even with his defenses in place around his mind. The links must have permanent access to his mind no matter what.

His thoughts and attention were snapped back to reality when Musubi slammed stood and slammed her hands on the table, making everyone, even Dante and Miya jump. Akitsu was the only one who didn't jump, but that was more because of her personality and slowness to movement in all things that didn't involve Dante. Kusano had jumped though, and was now staring at Musubi with wide, blinking eyes.

"How could you?" she demanded of Seo, looking at him with a glare. Yes, a glare. One that could probably melt steel if it were capable of being put into a physical power. It was a look he had never expected to see on his the naïve and childish girl. Musubi was not one to take things seriously, she was the kind of girl who was always happy, always smiling, and was something of a scatter brain. This new look, it would be unnerving to see on his normally happy and kind, albeit slightly insane and battle crazed, Sekirei if he didn't know what he did.

"Eh?" Seo blinked, leaning back from the look from where he sat, resulting in another wince.

"How could you let your Sekirei continue to hunt down those who have yet to find their Ashikabi?" she demanded once again, this time elaborating her question/accusation a little more. "Don't you know how important it is for all the unwinged Sekirei to find their destined ones? By defeating them before they find their Ashikabi, you're denying them the chance to find love!"

"Hey, it's not like I'm the one going out and defeating Unwinged Sekirei," Seo defended himself from the normally excitable girl's accusing stare.

"They're your Sekirei," Musubi accused. "You could easily tell them not to fight Unwinged Sekirei anymore. I'm sure they would listen."

Seo actually snorted at that. "You obviously don't know my Sekirei very well," he told the girl, and Dante actually had to agree. From what he had seen of Seo's relationship with his Sekirei, much as he may deny it, he was not the one wearing the pants in that relationship. Musubi frowned at the man. With her first avenue of getting the man to listen to her blocked off, she whirled on Dante and gave him an pleading look.

"Dante," she began pleadingly. "Please make him see reason. I'm sure if it were to come from you, he would realize I'm right and talk to his Sekirei about what their doing." Dante almost flinched, not just at the tone in her voice as she spoke, but at the pure, honest feelings coming in through their bond. The bond between a Sekirei and their Ashikabi was something Musubi truly believed in with all her heart, and the thought that Seo would just let their Sekirei trample over that bond bothered her intensely. More than anything else right now, she wanted Seo to see her side of things and at least make an attempt at reigning his Sekirei in.

"That won't work Musubi."

Musubi turned to Tobias, who was resting his chin on his hands, thinking.

"Seo sees what you're saying, but the problem is his Sekirei don't listen to him. They won't listen to anybody else either, except for three people." He ticked them off on his fingers. "Me, Kazehana and I'd bet Hourma. Those are the only three they might, and that's a very big might, listen to."

"Then please talk to them" Musubi pleaded to the wind user. "They can't do this."

"Tobias..." Kazehana said softly, surprising him. She didn't use his name much. "It might be a good idea to try."

Tobias stared at her a second, then smiled and surprised everyone at the table. He leaned in and gave her a quick kiss as he said, "I was thinking the same thing."

Kazehana smiled back happily.

"But it'll take a while." Tobias leaned back,business like again. "We'd have to track them down and this is a big city. We will try, but it's going to take a while."

Musubi nodded to show she understood, but she looked relived Tobias had agreed.  
Dante was suddenly aware of a light breathing next to him and looked down to see Kusano was resting her head on the table, eyes closed. She had fallen asleep.

"Akitsu." The ice user looked to Dante as he got up. "Can you put Ku to bed? I have something I wnt to talk to you about Miya."

"Ah. Yes." Akitsu agreed, getting from her spot and picking up Ku gently before caring her from the room. Tobias yawned and got up as well. "I think I'll hit the sack too."

Kazehana stood and smiled. "Well, I guess I'll join you, if that's ok."

Tobias looked at her, then Miya, but she didn't change her calm expression, so he shrugged. "Just so long as you wear something this time."

Kazehana's smile turned sultry. "Where's the fun in that?"

Tobias walked from the room without responding though he had blushed. Kazehana shook her head and walked after him.

Everyone else left then, Uzume doing so quickly after saying good night, Musubi going to bed after Dante asked her, leaving only Miya, Dante, and Seo.

"I guess I better go." Seo grunted as he got up, holding the bag of ice to 'family jewels.' "What the hell are your feet made of?"

"Be grateful, that was a love tap." Dante said casually. "Have a nice walk home." He added cheerfully with a cat like grin.

"Bastard." Seo grumbled, hobbling from the room, leaving the landlady and Timelord alone as he shut the door behind him.

"What did you want talk to me about?" Miya asked.

Dante sat down again and looked at her seriously. "I had a favor to ask you. I know you practice swordsmanship every morning before you start the day. I wanted you to train Musubi."

Miya blinked at the unexpected request. "What for?"

Dante looked around before he leaned in close to Miya's ear.

"Number 1, Miya Asama."

Miya's eyes widened to epically proportions as Dante sat back, face blank.

"Musubi's not experienced enough in fighting to be safe, but I can't take the time to train her, I have too many other things to do. Kazehana wouldn't be right, her powers don't mesh properly with Musubi's fighting style, Tobias either. You're the only one who would be able to train her."

Dante stood and bowed to the landlady. "I understand if you don't want to. Also, I'll respect your privacy and keep what I know to myself. I won't betray the trust you have in me."

She didn't respond so Dante turned and started to leave the room when he heard, "Dante."

He looked over his shoulder to see Miya had trained her face back into a blank.

"I'd be glad to train her."

Dante smiled and bowed his head.

"Thank you ma'am." Hw then left the room and closed the door behind him, leaving Miya alone. She sat silent for a few minutes before whispering one line.

"Who are you Dante?"


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Outside the train station where Dante had landed outside only 6 days earlier, and right near where his TARDIS was hidden, everything was quite as people went about on their business. Until a sound sliced through the silence.

_**VWOOORP VWOOOORP VROOOOORP**_

Something right besides Dante's TARDIS was flickering in and out of existance before it solidified. It was a 21st century British telephone booth, but the windows were blacked out, letting no one see inside. After a second, the door opened with a creek and a figure stepped out. The figure in question was dressed in a gray hoodie, blue jeans, and black sneakers.

The figure glanced about before closing the door of the phone booth behind them. They then turned to the booth and pulled out a silver device. They pointed it at the booth and it edmited the tell tale whine of a sonic screwdriver. The booth flickered and vanished again.

"Perfect." A female voice said as the figure pocketed the sonic. The now revealed female dug through he hoodie before taking out a small bulky computer of some sort. She tapped at the screen several times before holding it out in front of her, turning on the spot. The device started beeping when she face a direction and she stopped.

"Ok, let's go track that trouble maker down." The voice muttered before walking off, heading in the direction of Izumo Inn.

_At the Inn_

"Oh come on!" Tobias whisper shouted. He had woken up just the same as yesterday, same time, and Kazehana was holding him. Only now, she was resting on top of him while she was sleeping.

'At least she's wearing something this time.' He grumbled, though he wasn't entirely sure if that was better. She had chose to wear his shirt, which he had taken off yesterday before going to bed, finishing before her. And the shirt was stretching so tightly across her impressive chest it looked ready to burst, made worst by the fact she was pressing them closer against him as she hugged him.

"I bet Dante doesn't have this problem." Tobias muttered as he thought about how to get out of this prison.

He shouldn't have said anything.

"Tobias, you ok?" Dante asked from outside his room.

'Kill me.'

"Uh, yeah, why?" Tobias asked, trying to keep his voice causal.

"Because I heard you almost shout 'oh, come on.'"

"Yeah, just got... What did you need?" Tobias asked, not wanting to answer.

"...Kazehana's on top of you isn't she?" Dante asked, and Tobias could literally hear the smirk on his face.

"Shut up." Tobias replied, face red as Kazehana shifted in her sleep, rubbing her chest against him.

"I'll just leave you two alone." Tobias heard him walk down the hall and Tobias had to use all his will power not to shout after him.

_20 minutes later_

"So, nice night?" Dante asked Tobias, smirking.

"Keep it up smart ass and we'll see how much you laugh without air in your lungs." Tobias growled back, eyes closed.

Dante and Tobias were in the garden in back, Dante watching Miya spar with Musubi. When he had gotten up, he had found Miya outside his door already dressed and he requested he wake up Musubi so they could start training. Musubi was wearing clothes that schoolgirls would wear during gym class, red bloomers and a gym shirt, and her gloves over her hands. Miya was dressed normally, but fighting with her sword sheathed for the time being.

Tobias and Dante were watching from the porch, or Dante was watching. Tobias had his eyes closed and was meditating, floating a foot off the ground while pressing his knuckles toghther.

"So, you meditate." Dante said.

"Every day. Helps me concentrate. Makes me appreciate the power of air, it's presence. And I'm working on something."

"What are you working on?" Dante asked as he watched Musubi jumped back from a violent slash Miya sent her way.

"I can control air, but something I've wanted to do is make a passive sensing ability using my air manipulation."

"So basically a pulse radar of sorts." Dante noted.

"Basically. I try and be aware of the air around me, feeling where it is, where it's not. Gives me basic outlines right now, but I want to get it more specific when it comes to outlines and distance. Now can I please concentrate?" Tobias finished, irritated by the interruption.

"Of course, sorry."

Tobias took a breath and calmed his mind again. He let his awareness seep out around him, treating the air as an extension of him and slowly letting the range expand outwards. He 'saw' everything, air was white, anything in the absences of air was black, but blurry. He watched as Musubi tried several jabs at Miya, Miya dodging easily and gracefully before swinging back at Musubi in retaliation. He 'saw' the leafs on the trees moving, but more then that, he saw inside the house too. His senses weren't very specific yet, so he only saw vague outlines, but there was enough contrast to make out people. Uzume was in her room, apparently hugging her knees for some reason. Kusano was taking a nap and Akitsu was taking a bath, which he quickly ignored, and finally his room, where Kazehana was sitting on the bed, drinking from a bottle. He didn't find Kagari since the man was apparently at work.

Tobias was about to retract his sense, but paused. His focus was currently on the second floor, looking at the right wall. He wouldn't care, but there was air inside the walls, and far more then what should be there. He let his awarness seep into he space and found himself...somewhere. It was clearly a room, but it was full with objects that had odd shapes that he couldn't see clearly. He did however see a figure in the room, hunched over something and looking at one of the objects. He looked over the figure and saw it was apparently female, but not someone he knew.

Tobias's snapped his eyes open.

"Someone's here."

Dante looked over at him, taking his attention away from the fight. "What do you mean?"

"Second floor, right wall just near the stair case. Someone's hiding."

"Could you see who?"

"Only that's its female."

Dante looked at the two females sparring and nodded, thinking before nodding.

"Well, let's go see who our mystery guest is." He turned to Miya and waited until she blocked a punch from Musubi before calling, "Miya!"

Both girls looked at him as Dante got up and said, "I'm going to make some tea, want some?"

Miya nodded. "I'd appreciate that, thank you."

"I'll help you." Tobias stopped floating and stood, following Dante inside. They swiftly made theirway up the stairs and stopped when Tobias said, "Right here."

Dante touched the wall lightly, running his palm over it. "Did you see anything inside this part itself?"

"My sensing isn't quite that accurate yet. But I did see a sliver of air before it was cut off by something in the center."

"Ok, that leaves two options. Either it lifts up, or..." Dante pushed the left side of the wall and the entire peice silently swung inwards.

"Bingo."

The two cautiously entered the room. Much like Dante had expected, the small room was very poorly lit, the single light fixture that he could see on the ceiling was going unused. Instead all of the illumination came from the many dozens of monitors that were stacked along the walls in columns and rows around the three sides of the rooms that the door was not located on. They could count at least two dozen computer monitors of various shapes and sizes splayed along the wall in what could only be called organized chaos. Despite the fact that the monitors looked like they had just been thrown together with no regards to aesthetics, Dante could tell that there was actually a purpose to their placement. Interspersed among the monitors Dante and Tobias recognized box-like modems and hard drives, all of which he recognized as belonging to some of the more advanced computer systems in the world. The very little amount of floor space available in the room was being covered by a lumpy futon, which had empty packages of snack food and cans from what was recognized as energy drinks. In short, the entire room looked like a hackers paradise.

Sitting at the far end of the room, next to one of the larger monitors was a woman. Much like all of the other Sekirei they had met, this one was quite beautiful. She looked to be in her early to mid twenties, dressed all in white. Her outfit was some kind of long dress with a higher then normal neckline, it was bare at the shoulders, and slit up the sides nearly to her hips with a small diamond shape gap at the top of her breasts to expose just a hint of her cleavage. She had two sleeve like additions that apparently attached to her dress underneath her armpits and hung low over her hands. She had dull auburn hair that fell low down her back and was framed on either side by a pair of plaits that she had thrown over her shoulders, and her eyes were concealed by a pair of large round glasses that hid a pair of dark red eyes. She looked surprised, her mouth open in shock as the upper half of her body turned to face them. However, the moment her eyes landed on Dante, her face turned a deep shade of red that was partially hidden by the low lighting.

"Wow. I feel like I stepped into one of The Doctor's labs." Dante muttered.

Looking at the various monitors scattered around the room, Tobias saw that many of them were showing images of the various areas of the house, including the porch where he had been meditating just moments prior.

"So, how long have you been watching us?" Tobias asked causally, but the girl didn't react. She was staring at Dante and her face was getting redder and redder.

"Can we know the name of the Sekirei that's been spying on us?" Dante asked. Said Sekirei blinked, her expression managing to convey surprise even as the pace of her breathing began to increase.

"M-Matsu," she rasped out, sounding like she had run a marathon in one hundred degree heat. The flush on her cheeks were beginning to get brighter, the redness actually glowing within the barely illuminated room.

"Uh, Dante..." Tobias tried to say, knowing this was not normal.

"So, Matsu, how have you been enjoying your stay?" Dante asked.

"Dante..." Tobias tried to say.

"How much information did you get on us?" Dante went on.

"Dante Price, Age 17, Born: July 13th 1996 in New York City, New York, Height: 5' 8", Weight: 110 lbs., Eye color: brown, Hair color: black. Current Sekirei: Number 88 Musubi, Number 108 Kusano, and the scrapped Number 07 Atsuki. Tobias, no last name, Height: 6'1", Weight: 130 lbs., Eye color: silver, Hair color: black. Current Sekirei: Number 03 Kazehana. You are both very mysterious, but you Dante..."

"Dante!" Tobias said.

"What?" Dante asked, irritated at the interruption.

"Is it me or is she looking...agitated?"

Dante turned to look at Matsu, who had begun to crawl forward on her hands and knees, stopping when she was just barely a foot in front of him. Her eyes never left his as she tilted her head and looked up at him, and it was now, when she was this close to him that Dante realized there was something wrong with her. No, not something wrong with her, something familiar. He had seen this kind of reaction before.

In Musubi just before he winged her.

And it was in that moment of realization that Dante noticed everything else about her that he had been to been to focused on acquiring his information to notice before. The way her cheeks flared brilliantly within the darkened chamber as she looked at him. Her half lidded eyes hidden underneath the fringe of her bangs and behind those round spectacles. That seductive way she was sitting, leaning forward on her hands and knees with her arms pushing her cleavage together.

"Crap." Dante said.

"A very mysterious person," Matsu continued as Dante and Tobias took a cautious step back. As she spoke, her left hand came up to press her palm against her breast, right above her heart. "You, who are a complete mystery to everyone, is the Ashikabi of this Sekirei, number zero two, Matsu." She crawled forward another step, and they took another step back. "Now," she said, her eyes taking on a gleam that was actually beginning to unnerve the teens. "Please calm this hot body with your thick, hot, DNA."

She pounced.

Tobias snapped his hand up and clenched it in a fist, stopping Matsu inches from Dante. Matsu looked shocked before starting to struggle, making Tobias's frown grow deeper and his hand start to shake, needing him to support it with the other.

"Dante, she's strong, I can't hold her!" Tobias warned.

"Seeing that." Dante said just as Matsu said, "Let me go! I need his DNA so I can experiment!"

"I've heard of perverts, but this is just plain nuts!" Tobias said through gritted teeth.

"Ok, Tobias, let her go, and uh, run!"

Tobias unclenched and Matsu fell to the ground, stunning her temporarily. Dante and Tobias both ran from the room quickly as Matsu called after, "Hey, come back! I just want to experiment!"

Dante was running down the hall while Tobias leaped down the stair case, landing in a crouch at the bottom and taking off, heading for his room. Dante would've followed him, but he wasn't thinking clearly and had only reacted out of instinct.

Dante was running down the hall when one of the doors slid open and Uzume stepped out. Her eyes widened as she spotted Dante charging towards her and again on instinct, Dante threw himself over her, keeping his body parallel to the ground to go over her, flipping on landing on his feet as he passed her.

"Dante, what are you doing?!" Uzume demanded and Dante was about to reply when he heard, "There you are!"

Dante looked passed Uzume to see Matsu in the hall. Her breathing was just as harsh as before, perhaps even heavier than it had been when she had first started trying to get him. Matsu seemed to be almost in a trance as she moved towards him, walking slowly and with stumbling footsteps like she was some kind of zombie, only instead of wanting to eat his brains, she wanted to rape him.

Uzume took her eyes off Dante and turned to see who this newcomer was, and her eyes quickly went wide with surprise. "Matsu!" she shouted, her voice sounding like an odd combination between shock and panic. "What are you doing out of your room?"

"Heheheheh!" Matsu wasn't listening to the surprised girls cries, indeed the red head seemed to have not even noticed the other female in the room as she stalked towards the hybrid.

"Come on, Dante. Quell this body with your DNA, your hot, thick, white strands of DNA."

Dante shuddered at the words. It was quite obvious that this girl was not talking about a kiss.

Just then the door to Dante's room opened and Ku walked out, rubbing her eyes. She blinked when she spotted Dante and her face split in a grin.

"Big brother!" She said happily.

"Little busy Ku." Dante said, watching Matsu still getting closer, her hair dancing in a breeze.

Wait. Breeze?

The breeze picked up in a slipstream, blowing violently down the hall towards Matsu, who was forced to close her eyes against it.

"Air lock."

The wind died down again and Matsu opened her eyes, blinking. Dante saw her muscles flex, but she couldn't move.

"What the...?" She said, confused.

"Thank god."

Everyone looked down the hall to see Tobias and Kazehana standing at the end, Tobias holding his hands clenched toghther.

"What took you so long?" Dante asked, irritated.

"Sorry, needed Kazehana to make the slip stream so I had time to lock Matsu." Tobias responded, keeping his eyes on Matsu, who was struggling.

"I have to say, I didn't appreciate him interrupting my drink." She said, her cheeks slightly red.

"Sorry about that, I'll make it up to you." Tobias responded.

"Really? I look forward to it." Kazehana responded seductivly, but Tobias ignored her.

"Let me go!" Matsu shouted, still trying to get out.

"You can try to, but I had time to super compress the air around you. That air could stop a semi truck going 40 miles an hour."

"And why did you do that?"

The air around everyone instantly turned dark, heavy with malicious aura and killing intent. Everyone froze, except for Dante, and started sweating heavily, Ku choosing to cling to Dante's leg as hard as she could.

They all mechanically turned their heads to see Miya, standing at the end of the hall and smiling evilly as her hanya mask was floating behind her.

"Oooohhhhh Uzume." Miya said sweetly. "Care to explain why Matsu is out of her room?"

Just then another aura appeared and all turned to see another blackness behind Dante, only his was darker and deeper. Out of this blackness came chains that quickly shot out towards Miya's mask and procceded to wrap around and break it into pieces, causing the landlady to stumble back a bit, eyes wide.

"Miya, can we talk before you start breaking out the mask?" He asked casually like he had just destroyed her greatest weapon of terror. Miya simply stared at him for a second before schooling her face in a smile.

"Of course."

_5 minutes later_

"I'm really sorry about causing so much trouble," Matsu said, rubbing her head sheepishly as she did so. "Please allow me to reintroduce myself. I am Sekirei number zero two, Matsu. Pleased to meet you all." The red head bowed towards everyone as was customary in Japan, though since they were all sitting around the table all she could do was bow her head.

"The pleasure's all mine," Dante replied somewhat dryly. Absently looking around, everyone was sitting around the table, excluding Hourma who was still at work. The introductions and gathering everyone had taken a while, bringing them up to speed on what had happened.

"My, it seems nothing is ever boring when you're around," Miya said with a gentle smile that hid her amusement.

"I would just like to say that none of this was our fault," Tobias stated, his tone tired.

"Not your fault?" asked Uzume, her voice a mixture between incredulous and amused.

"How is this whole situation not your fault?"

"I didn't ask her to chase me, you know," Dante groaned. "Matsu looked like she wanted to rape me. I had to get out of there. What else was I supposed to do?"

"Hmph," Matsu huffed to herself. "Maybe you should have just let me rape you," she muttered quietly.

"What was that, Matsu?" asked Miya, her beautiful smile turning to the red head. Matsu froze.

"N-Nothing, Miya!" The red head squeaked in fear as the aura of malicious anger and hate appeared behind the the lavenderette. Gulping, Matsu was quick to point out something that Miya, in her need to stamp out all things illicit and forbidden, had forgotten about.

"Dante's still in the room!" She shouted, causing Miya to look over at where said guy was sitting calmly at the table,watching her. Miya cut off using her mask, feeling catious around the man since he had ripped her mask into shreds.

"Anyways," the landlady continued after taking a moment to regain her previous gently demeanor. Her gentle smile returned as she looked at the secret tenant of Izumo Inn. "I hope you have calmed down now, Matsu." She said, making Matsu puff out her cheeks and turn her head in annoyance, though from the pink tinge on her cheeks, she was more embarrassed than annoyed.

"I said I was sorry," the red head pouted, looking for all the world like a child that had just had their favorite toy taken away. "That wasn't even how I wanted to introduce myself to Dante," she muttered. She seemed to be truly disappointed in herself, and Dante couldn't help but wonder just how she had originally planned on meeting him. A moment later he decided he wouldn't tempt fate any longer when she said, "My original plan was to wait until everyone had left the house, or were at least on opposite sides of the house when he finally took a bath, and then pounce." The girl didn't even seem to realize she had spoken out loud until her eyes widened and her hands slapped themselves over her mouth. Tobias looked red while thinking, 'I can't decide wheather to pity the guy or curse him.'

"Oh my," Miya muttered in obvious disapproval. "You do know that illicit relations within Izumo Inn are strictly forbidden." The frown on the lavenderette's face and she soon smiled. "Why, if you actually did do something like that then I would have no choice but to cast you out on the street," she said, and it seemed to Dante that with her being incapable of using her hanya mask thanks to him, she had turned towards blackmail in order to get what she wanted. He saw why such a threat had enough to actually convince the perverted Sekirei to stop her untoward advances.

"No!" Matsu cried out as she flung herself on the ground in front of Miya, her figure prostrated in a bow with her nose touching the floor as if she were in the presence of her lord. Dante had to raise an eyebrow at how frantic the girl sounded. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Please don't kick me out, Miya! I promise I won't do it again! I'll be good from now on, I promise!"

"How can I trust that what you say is true?" asked Miya, her mouth a thin line of disapproval. Dante had to admit the woman was a great actor, even he was having trouble telling if she was lying or not. However, he was sure that the landlady was fibbing in order to get Matsu's cooperation. After all, she had gone through all the trouble of hiding the red heads presence, even from him and his Sekirei. Surely after going through so much trouble to keep the woman a secret, she wouldn't just kick her out.

Matsu didn't seem to think that way as she frantically and repeating bowed low and mumbled out apologies and promises to the woman who owned Maison Izumo. "I give you my word," the red head was saying. "Just please don't kick me out, I beg of you."  
Miya waved off Matsu's concerns with a gentle smile. With her intimidation and blackmailing tactics done, she returned to be nothing more than a beautiful yet unassuming landlady. "Very well, though I do expect you to uphold that promise in the future." As Matsu's head began to bob up and down frantically, the sword wielding widow turned to look at Dante and Tobias. "Now then, perhaps Tobias and Dante would care to explain just how it is they managed to find out where Matsu lives." she said. It wasn't a question.

Tobias rubbed his head. "Yeah, uh, that was kinda my fault. I've been working on a sensory ability if sorts and when I was testing it I, uh, happened to find the hidden room."

Miya rose an eyebrow. "How does it work?"

"It's sort of abstract sensory. I see where air is, where it's not, and I see the outlines of the spaces where the air isn't. It's not that developed though, so the images are extremely blurry."

Kazehana was looking at Tobias in surprise. "That's incredible. I can't manipulate air that well."

"It took forever to even start it, but we'll talk about it later. I'm interested in why Matsu was here in the first place." Tobias directed this to Matsu.

"I think the real question," Dante added, giving both Uzume and Miya an accusing stare. "Is why you two felt the need to hide the fact that there was another tenant hiding away at Izumo Inn. I hope you both realize that all of this could have been avoided if you had just come out and said there was someone hiding with us and that she didn't like to be bothered." Uzume grimaced, and even Miya seemed to look contrite and chastised by his words. Now that the tables had been turned, Dante did not hesitate in pressing his advantage.

"Well?" he asked, leaning on his right forearm which he had set upon the table, and tapping a steady beat with his index finger.

"I do apologize for not notifying you that there was someone else living within Izumo Inn." Miya began slowly. "However, we all have our secrets, as you well know."  
Dante accepted the jab easily and nodded. "I do understand that," he began. "And I'm not saying you're wrong either. I am merely pointing out that this could have been avoided if you had just told us about someone else living here before we found out on our own. Or did you not expect us to figure that out?"

"I didn't expect you to." Uzume admitted. "Then again, I also never expected to have a guy with wind powers and someone who could wing a scrapped number to live here either."

"What I want to know is why Matsu reacted so badly to Dante here," Tobias stated, most likely in an attempt to change the subject. He eyed Matsu curiously as if ahe were some puzzle to be studied. "I mean, he literally needed to have me and Kazehana restrain her, which I might add, took one of my most powerful stopping and air manipulating abilities." Over where she sat, Matsu blushed at the other teens words.

"I am really sorry about what happened, Dante," she said, sounding contrite. "I had known I was reacting for a while now," she admitted, her eyes darting over to Dante and her blush increasing. The hybrid in question couldn't help but wonder if it was due to her embarrassment or her reacting to him. She stuck her tongue out and wetted her lips before continuing. "But I had been hoping to study Dante and Tobias for a little while longer before confronting them. I honestly don't know what came over me." She looked down at her hands on the table, her face gaining a contemplative expression. "When Dante first came into the room, my entire body felt like it was on fire, just reminding myself to breath was difficult." She looked back up and stared at a now uncomfortable Dante. "And when you started talking to me I, well, I just lost it. I knew right then and there that I had to have you."

"Uhh... ah..." Dante was at a loss for words. Not due to embarrassment at Matsu's own words, at least, not completely, but at the fact that he seemed to have caused such a strong reaction in the girl. Truth be told, the moment he had entered the room, he had noticed his own body responding. He had ignored it at the time, having wanted answers and been in no mood to even think about his own arousal. A part of the reason he had run from the girl was not just because of what she had tried doing to him, but also because of what he probably would have done to her if he had allowed them to kiss. Even now, Dante could feel himself responding to her. It was the whole reason he was currently using a concentration trick he had learned over the years combined with his outstanding will power to keep the conversation going as it was. "It... it's alright," he stuttered out at last. Taking a deep breath, he felt ready to continue. "You wouldn't be the first Sekirei to have reacted so strongly to me."

"Really?" asked Matsu, seeming to perk up at hearing that she wasn't the only one who had reacted like that to the hybrid.

"Hmm..." Dante hummed in agreement. "When Musubi began reacting to me, her body had nearly shut down from overheating. She could hardly even move at the time." Musubi nodded while Matsu looked extremely interested in hearing about this particular news, and the hybrid was almost positive it was not just because it meant she wasn't the only one to have such an overreacting reaction to him. Though just why Matsu found that interesting Dante didn't know.

"What about Akitsu?" asked Matsu, eying Musubi and then the ice user.

"That was an interesting case." Dante admitted. "I reacted to her, not the other way around since she was a scrapped number." He offered an apologetic look to Akitsu, who nodded back in understanding. "Something was blocking her ability to react, but I managed to break through it. Don't ask how, it's a trade secret."  
Matsu looked slightly irritated but she understood and nodded.

"That would make sense," Matsu said while nodding. She adjusted her glasses, which seemed to gleam in the reflected light of the sun. Thankfully, this gleam seemed more like the kind a researcher would have when there was a mystery to be solved, and not that of the perverted hentai who wanted to get into his pants. "After all, as a scrapped number, Akitsu wasn't supposed to even be capable of having an Ashikabi." She turned her eyes on Dante, this time studying him with some other than perverted or embarrassed glances. "That's why Dante gained his nickname as the Miracle Worker."

"And I gained the title Airbender, yay." Tobias grumbled.

"You sound unhappy with your title." Kazehana noted.

"I feel like people are seeing me as a game peice they need to have or manipulate rather then a person. It irritates me." Tobias admitted.

Kazehana smiled and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "You're not a game peice to me."

Tobias smiled back. "Thank you."

"Back to the subject at hand." Dante said, hating to interrupt them, but needing things to move along. "I have to ask, you've clearly been here ever since I arrived, but how many cameras do you have set up?"

"Matsu has camera's set up everywhere! Heheheheh!" Matsu exclaimed with what Dante had decided to call her perverted old man giggle. He narrowed his eyes.

"If you have them everywhere, that means you also have a camera in the bathhouse," he stated. Matsu began to nod her head eagerly, at least she did until the cold feeling of malice began leaking from Miya.

"Matsu," the woman began. "You do realize that peeping on people while they are bathing is a very illicit action, and illicit actions are forbidden within Izumo Inn." There it was again, creeping out from behind the lithe and beautiful woman that was currently releasing unimaginable levels of hatred and malice. Beside him, Akitsu had turned her head away, the small cup of tea in front of her freezing over. Musubi had taken to clinging to Dante while Kusano was clinging to Musubi, Tobias looking unaffected but holding Kazehana to comfort her while she held him around his chest in fear. Uzume was shaking in fear. "I do hope you plan on taking those things down," Miya smiled. "Otherwise, I may have to kick you out."

"Eek! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I'll take them down right away!" Matsu wailed at the sight, bowing her entire body repeatedly. "Just please keep that, that, THING away from me!" When that didn't seem to work, she used what was becoming the tried and true method for getting rid of the hanya mask. "Dante's still in the room!" Indeed she was right, Dante looking at the mask challengingly. The mask disappeared in an instant, causing Dante to narrow his eyes at the woman. His challenging look was returned by Miya, and sparks soon began flying between them as the two fought in a war that only they knew of. One in which both were determined to be the winner.

"Dear god, he's got balls of steel." Uzume muttered, looking at the warring couple.

"Do you have to be so crass, Uzume?" asked Dante, looking away from Miya

"He-heh," Uzume grinned and winked at the teen. "At least I didn't mention what balls I was talking about." Dante just sighed for what seemed to be the umpteenth time as he leaned back in his seat next to Akitsu. His own Sekirei must be gaining an immunity to the mask by now, because they had already recovered from the sight of it.

Before Dante could say anything further to berate Uzume, Matsu decided to make a change of subject. "If Musubi and my own reaction are anything to go by, then Dante must be a very strong Ashikabi," she said, her eyes looking at the person in question before turning to Akitsu still sitting at his side. "Considering he even managed to wing someone who wasn't supposed to gain her wings, I don't think I can say I'm very surprised by this." She then turned her attention back to Dante and looked at him with a surprisingly demure expression. "If we're done talking, can I please get my wings now?" she asked.

"Urk." Dante said, not expecting her to ask this so soon.

"Oh wow, you've got another Sekirei! Isn't that great, Dante!" Musubi cheered, seemingly thrilled by the thought of her Ashikabi adding another member to his harem. "And this one's a single digit too!" Yes, his first Sekirei was quite overjoyed.

"He-heh," Uzume chuckled as she gave the teen a probing look. "Wow, it's pretty impressive to see you adding another one to your harem. Most Ashikabi's ever get one Sekirei to react."

"I'm feeling torn between being jealous of you or pitying you." Tobias threw in his two cents, Kazehana nodding.

"Ugh, thanks, I guess." Dante replied. While Musubi might be excited by the thought of him gaining another Sekirei to add to his harem, the hybrid was most definitely not excited, not because he was feeling insulted, but just the fact that with him having so many Sekirei, someone was eventually going to find out his secrets before he was ready. But in the end, there was only one real answer.

"Of course."

Matsu squeled happily, rushing over to Dante and hugging him while chanting 'thank you,' over and over.

"Ok, are we going to wing you or should we wait until tomorrow?" Dante asked cheekily. His response was Matsu pulling back before pulling him into a kiss.

Behind Matsu, her Sekirei crest emerged as the bond formed, and with it bright, golden wings appeared behind her back. The wings were much different from any of the other ones Dante had seen so far. They looked more geometric in shape, the edges were crisper, sharper, hard lines and angles that could not be produced by anything organic.

And then the wings dispersed, and Dante was left only with the feel Matsu's lips against his. They were warm, moist, intoxicating. As the kiss continued, Dante felt the woman kissing him getting bolder. Her tongue moved past his lips and tried to slip in between his teeth, her body was starting to grind against his, her left leg was hooking itself around his own legs.

Wait. What?

With movements that were swift, and sure, and surprised the crap out of Dante, Matsu used her leg to cut his out from under him. The hybrid fell to the ground, hitting the hard floor with a loud 'oof!' as he took the red head with him. For a moment, he was seeing double. Why were their two Matsu's? Blinking, it took him a second to uncross his eyes and see that there was only one Matsu. Her face was also much clearer now, the details he had missed before now sharpened and enhanced.  
He did not like that look on her face.

"And now," Matsu started, giggling as she wiggled and squirmed against him, her glasses gleaming ominously in the light. "It's time for the experimentation!"  
She was suddenly jerked up and floating two feet above him, Tobias holding his fist out and up.

"This is going to get old real fast," he sighed.

"Darn it!" Matsu shouted, struggling again. She stopped when she felt something cold against her neck.

"Oh Matsu," the voice of Miya came from behind Matsu, causing her to freeze. The red head gulped as Miya's blade came to rest against her neck, caressing her jugular. "Perhaps this has something to do with the fact that I was almost positive that I have expressly forbidden any illicit activity within Izumo Inn."

"Ah ah ha, r-right," Matsu laughed, not her perverted old man laughs, but a nervous laugh of fear. "Wh-Why do I have this thing on my neck?"

"I would like to ask you cease any and all illicit activity, Matsu." Miya told the red head in her pleasant and beautiful voice.

"Ah hehehehe... r-right," Matsu said, and then paused. "Um, Miya?"

"Yes?" the woman asked, her pleasant expression still in place.

"C-Can you please take this thing off my neck? I'm afraid if I move around I might accidentally slit my throat."

Miya blinked. "Huh?"

The door knocked then and Miya turned towards it, sheathing her sword.

"I'll be right back." She stated, leaving her sword leaning on the table and Dante getting up. Tobias slowly twisted his hand and Matsu moving the same direction until she was standing up as Tobias let go of her. They heard the door open and Miya's voice said,

"Hello, can I help you?"

Both Dante and Tobias heard the female voice at once and froze, not even breathing.

"Yes, I'm so sorry to bother you, but is there anyone here by the name of Tobias?" A light female voice asked.

Dante and Tobias ran from the room so fast they left after images of themselves and skid marks on the wood.

Both of them, Dante behind Tobias, were staring past Miya, looking at the female who had spoken. She was wearing a gray hoodie with the hood currently down and was looking at Miya, a smile on her face.

She was around Dante's height and age, had blonde hair tied in a long pony tail, emerald eyes and a very mischievous and, to Dante, familiar grin on her face. The girl looked over Miya's shoulder as she spotted Tobias, but Dante was hidden by him.

"Jenny!?" Tobias shouted.

"Tobias!" Jenny cried happily, slipping around Miya and running down the hall, throwing herself into his arms in a hug.

"But...you...I...here... What are you doing here!?" Tobias demanded in shock, hugging Jenny back on instinct.

"Looking for you!" She cried happily, pulling back to look at him. "After that test went wrong, River tracked me down and asked me help find you. Took a long time, but here you are!" Jenny said happily.

"Wait, you know Jenny?" Dante asked, not sure what else to say. Jenny looked over Tobias shoulder and her eyes widened.

"Dante?" She said.

"Um, yeah. Hi." Dante waved weakly.

"Dante!" Jenny ran around Tobias and threw herself into a hug again. "Oh, it's so good to see you again!"

"You too." He said, hugging her back. "But, what, what, what are you doing here?"

"Looking for Tobias."

"Yeah, I got that much."

"Dante, Tobias, who is this?" Miya asked, having watched the interactions.

"Oh, uh Miya," Dante said, pulling back from Jenny, who looked back at the lavenderette.

"This is Jenny, she's a...friend." He finished lamely, not sure what to say.

"Hi." Jenny said cheerfully, waving.

"Hello." Miya nodded her head.

"Uh, Jenny, why don't you come to my room, we can talk and catch up?" Dante said, wanting to find out how she was here.

"Oh, sure."

"Before that though..." Miya smiled evilly. "Can you take your shoes off please?"  
Jenny looked down and saw she was still wearing her tennis shoes. "Oh, sure, I'm sorry."

Jenny then went back to the entrance and unlaced her shoes, putting them on the mat before walking back to them.

"So, shall we?" She said cheerfully.

"Uh, Tobias, you take her to my room, I'll tell the others we're going to be busy."

"Got it." Tobias's led Jenny upstairs. Dante quickly ran back to the dinning room, opened the door and stuck his head in, pausing when he saw everyone staring at him.

"What?"

"Who's Jenny?" Uzume asked curiously, everyone nodding to show they were wondering the same thing.

"Uh, a friend. That we haven't seen in a long time. And need to talk to. Now."

"Riiiight. Got that from the shouts coming from the hall." Kazehana said.

"Right. Um, we'll be busy. So can you guys stay out of my room for the time being?"

Akitsu said, "Ah...Yes."

Musubi nodded. "Sure." She said cheerfully.

The rest of them nodded, Matsu being unusually quite.

"Thanks." Dante pulled his head back and shut the door. Everyone was quite for a few seconds before Uzume asked Matsu, "Do you have any cameras in Dante's room?"

"I'm not sure we should." Matsu said hesitantly. "This sounds important." She wanted to know more about her new Ashikabi, but having just been winged had temporarily shelved this urge and now she felt guilty about thinking about doing it.

"What's going on?" Musubi asked, not sure what was going on because of how childish she was.

"We're talking about spying on Dante and Tobias and learning a bit more about them."

_Dante's room_

Dante stopped just outside his room and opened the door, walking through. Jenny was sitting comfortably on the couch and looking around the room while Tobias was sitting on an air bed again, looking anywhere but at Jenny. Both looked at the door when Dante stepped through, Jenny smiling when she saw it was him.

Dante quickly closed the door and discreetly palmed his sonic, being careful to keep it hidden as he activated it, stopping the broadcast for the time being as he said, "Sorry girls, private."

They all heard a moan of disappointment coming from what sounded like Uzume and Matsu. Tobias pressed his palms toghther and held them for a second before nodding.

"Made a vacuum around the room except for the window. Now nobody can eavesdrop on us."

"Good." Dante nodded as he sat down in his desk chair, spinning it around to face the other two. Jenny was looking content, Tobias uncomfortable, until Dante said, "So, Jenny. It's good to see you again." He smiled, the situation temporarily forgotten as he saw his friend.

Jenny smiled back. "You too. When was the last time we saw each other?"

"Right after I gave you that TARDIS peice. It must've worked if you're here."  
Jenny nodded happily. "Yep."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa,whoa." Both timelords looked at Tobias who was making a T with his hands. "Time out. Be kind, rewind. How do you know each other?"

Dante looked at Jenny. "I'll tell it, shall I?"

"Sure."

Dante leaned back, getting comfortable before starting his story.

"Jenny and I met years and years ago, on accident really. I had been half timelord for a long enough time, the Doctor let me take the TARDIS for a spin. I went traveling around the Doctor's universe and just happened to land on a planet and time period that Jenny was at. I ran into her when she and I were running from the locals due to a *cough* misunderstanding."

Jenny laughed. "You insulted the elder of the village and killed his pet."

"I thought that thing was dangerous, how was I supposed to know he had tamed it? Besides, you insulted him as well and ended up in a prison pit." Dante shot back.

"Maybe, but I've been in worse." Jenny grinned.

"Of course. Back on the subject, Jenny and I escaped together. Long story short, we helped and ran into each other. I knew who she was, in fact I was shocked to find her."

"Yeah, and I wasn't shocked at all." Jenny laughed. "Here I am running for my life through this forest, when all of a sudden I run into something. Only problem is there was nothing there to run into."

"I said I was sorry. How was I supposed to know you would run right into the TARDIS?" Dante grumbled. "Speaking of which, you running into it shorted out the cloak. But again, long story short, we met."

"Traveled for a while, had fun. Loved the running." Jenny smiled. Tobias noted that she hadn't changed, always smiling and upbeat.

"Running was good," Dante agreed. "Anyways, we parted ways and as a parting gift I gave her a piece of the TARDIS, as well as instructions on how to make it grow into her own."

"Yep. Took a year, but I did it." Jenny smiled, thinking back on how she had patiently waited for her TARDIS to grow and see the universe like her dad did.

"And apparently met River."

"Yep." Jenny said, snapping out of her thoughts. "She tracked me down and told me what happened with her portable TARDIS, asked me to track down Tobias since she couldn't leave her universe with a vortex manipulator."

"Oh yeah, she said she was working on that problem last time I saw her."  
Jenny clapped her hands and said cheerfully, "Well, since over found you, time to get you back home."

"No."

Jenny blinked. "What?"

"We can't leave." Tobias said. "Not now."

"Why?" Jenny asked innocently.

"This universe were in right now, something's happening in it, something...huge. Dante and I are wrapped up in so tightly now if we left, everything would fall apart. We can't leave." Tobias said seriously, eyes glowing in the light.

"He's right." Jenny looked at Dante as he stood up. "We can't leave, not now."

"Why?" Jenny asked, confused.

"Faster to show you." Dante sat next to her and lifted both hands, stopping as he asked,

"May I?"

Jenny nodded and Dante lightly rested both hands on her temples. Both of them closed their eyes, taking deep breaths as Dante let the knowledge flow into Jenny. Her breathing got faster as the knowledge flowed in and when it was all absorbed, Jenny's eyes snapped open and she breathed explosively, sucking in deep breaths as she said, "That's, that's..."

"Despicable. We know." Dante said flatly as he removed his hands.

"And it's why we can't leave. We can't leave the Sekirei to be part of this mad man's game." Tobias said, getting up.

"What's the plan for now?" Jenny asked.

"Right now, nothing. Get stronger, gather information, it depends. But we're trashing his game." Dante said grimly. The room was quite for a few minutes before Dante clapped his hands.

"But enough about that. Come on, let's introduce you to everyone else." Dante said cheerfully, pulling Jenny to her feet and leading them out of his room.

_2 hours later_

"...and that's how me and Tobias met." Kazehana laughed around the table as she told the story.

"Really? Who knew you had it in you Tobias?" Jenny laughed, looking at said teenager who looked irritated.

"I hate you both." He grumbled. After Jenny had been introduced to everyone, they had decided to sit down and talk about how everyone had met and subsequently winged if it happened, and Kazehana had been having way too much fun telling her story. She was sitting besides Tobias on he right side of the table, Jenny on his other side while Dante and is Sekirei were sitting on the opposite side. Miya wasn't there, having some things she needed to do around the house.

"Ah, come on, it wasn't that bad." Dante tried to support him.

"Yeah, that's easy for you to say. You have 4 diffrent Sekirei, Musubi, Akitsu, Kusano, and...where's Matsu?" Tobias asked, looking around the table.  
Dante noticed she was missing as well.

"That's weird, she was just here a moment ago." Kazehana muttered.

"Hang on."

Tobias closed his eyes and went into his meditative pose, held it for a second, then opened his eyes again.

"She's in her room. And Kagari is coming up the walk."

"He's home early. Jenny, you want to meet Kagari, he's one of the housemates." Dante asked.

"Oh, sure." Jenny said cheerfully.

"Ok, come on then. We'll be right back." He told the others as he and Jenny stood up, walking out of the room just as Kagari was kneeling down and taking his shoes off.

"Hey Kagari, how was work?" Dante asked.

"It ws fine. Long, but considering its Wednesday not that bad." Kagari straightened out and started asking, "How was..."

He trailed off looking behind Dante. Dante blinked then looked back to see he was looking at Jenny.

"Oh. Kagari, this is Jenny, she's an old friend. Jenny, this is Kagari."  
Kagari didn't respond and Dante turned, raising an eyebrow as he saw what Kagari looked like. His face, which had been normal before, was now steadily turning redder and his breath was slightly heavier, his eyes glazed over.

"Kagari, you ok?" Dante asked, sounding concerned but in reality amused.

Kagari snapped out of his trance and swallowed, his throat suddenly parched. "Yeah, just tired. I'm going to go lay down."

Kagari quickly left, walking past Jenny without looking at her or saying anything. Jenny watched him go with a pout on her face.

"That was rude." She huffed, feeling slightly insulted.

"Don't be so sure."

Jenny looked at Dante who was smiling knowingly.

"I think I know what that reaction was, and if I'm right, you are incredibly lucky."

"What was it?" Jenny asked, feeling curious and for some reason slightly heated.

Dante's smile widened. "He was reacting to you."


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Two days had passed ever since Jenny had arrived at Izumo Inn, making it a Friday. Not truely noteworthy had happened in that time. Jenny had been allowed to move in after paying for her room, and when Dante inquired about it, she admitted to having soniced a ATM for cash just in case.

Miya was keeping her promise of training Musubi everyday and the girl was progressing in leaps and bounds, not fast enough to touch Miya, but she was much smoother in her attacks and was able to link them toghther in order to improve them. Tobias was working tirelessly to improve his sensory ability, having just started it and wanting to perfect it for its endless possibilities and applications in the near future. So far, his range was only 50 feet, and the outlines, while clearer then before, were still too blurry for his preference. Also, he still needed to meditate to use the ability, something he wished to change.

Dante was thinking of the meeting set Sunday at the hospital with the Ashikabi of the East, Higa Izumi. He had been thinking of how it could possibly go down, how he could make it so Uzume would ask for help rescuing her Ashikabi, and how he could take down the bastard of a Ashikabi. So every chance he got he would lock himself in his room and get on his laptop, hacking records to get blueprints and specifics about the hospital building as well as other buildings of key importance. He would use Matsu's room, since her set up was more sophisticated, but he couldn't think of how he could kick her out of her room without a rousing suspicion, either as to why he did, or how he could hack as well as he could. Either way the trouble wasn't worth it.

Another thing that was concerning him was Kagari. He hadn't seen the fire user ever since he had met Jenny. Tobias had checked on him and he seemed fine, but Tobias also said the air around him had been rising in the exact way air did when there was heat, making it ripple. That concerned Dante, since it implied Kagari's body heat was high or his powers were being slightly unstable. That's why he was now sitting in Matsu's room at 2 in the afternoon, talking to her while Miya was out running an errand with Musubi, Akitsu was playing with Ku in the park, and Kazehana was out doing Rassilon knows what.

"Reactions?" Matsu sounded confused as she turned from her bank of computer monitors. "Why do you want to know that?"

"A few reasons, but the main one is because if a Sekirei reacts and I don't want to or can't immediately wing them, I want to know what happens, as well as reaction signs."

Matsu nodded. "It's easy enough. Since I'm a brain type, information is my specialty."

She then started typing rapidly, bringing up several information windows as she said, "Reaction has 5 levels. Level one is mild, a slightly flush on the cheeks and labored breathing being the signs. As you go up higher and higher, the flush becomes more noticeable and the breathing heavier, as well as glazing of the eyes. But as levels of reaction get higher, it gets more dangerous."

"How so?" Dante asked, interested.

"The higher the level, the more violent the reactions are and the more they'll want to be winged."

"Like you." Dante smirked.

"Yes." Matsu had the decency to blush and adjust her glasses, embarrassed. Though she then grinned like a pervert. "I also still need to experiment with you to."

"Good luck with that. Keep in mind I am a lot stronger then you, last time you surprised me. Plus, Miya can walk in."

The last point caused Matsu to fearfully look at the door, like the lavenderette might have walked in unnoticed.

"Right. So, you also wanted to know what happens if you don't wing a Sekirei for one reason or another. That's a related matter that's tied closely to reactions."

Matsu pulled up more data and explained. "Sekirei have a instinctive desire to be winged when they find the person who is supposed to be their Ashikabi. Now, if they aren't winged, or don't want to be, that's when it gets complicated."

"How so?" Dante asked, getting more and more curious.

"As a Sekirei goes longer and longer without being winged, things start changing. Their bodies start reacting more and more violently, trying to get to their Ashikabi to be winged. Now, first come dreams connecting their Ashikabi."

"Like Ku did with me."

"Exactly. But if that doesn't work, power types would start losing control of their powers. For example, Akitsu would be uncontrollably freezing anything in the area around her and Ku would cause plants to grow wildly."

Dante thought for a few seconds then asked the question pressing down on him.

"What would happen with a fire type?"

Matsu paused for a second, fingers still before saying, not looking at Dante.

"Their powers would go out of control, growing stronger and stronger until they literally burned up."

He frowned. This was just as bad as he thought.

"Thanks Matsu. I'll be sure to pay you back for this." He grunted as he stood up, stretching his stiff legs.

"Well, maybe..."

"Except that." Dante dead panned.

"Oh." Matsu pouted. Chuckling, Dante gave her a kiss on the head, then left the room. He walked down the stairs to the yard, opening it and walking through.

Jenny was sparring lightly with Tobias, trading blows back and forth. Due to her 'birth', Jenny had reflexes and strength to fight hand to hand with most people, and she kept herself in shape to do so if needed. Tobias went for hand to hand combat to help integrate his wind powers into his fighting style, but wasn't currently using them in an offensive way due to Jenny being weak enough to be seriously hurt by them if something went wrong.

Jenny spun kicked towards Tobias head and he jumped over her, flipping over her and using his powers to make his jump higher. He spun, using his powers instinctively to decrease air resistance as he did, increasing his speed. He tried a kick at Jenny's mid riff, but she grabbed his leg before pushing back, knocking him off balance and causing them both to fall, her on too while still holding his leg. She then kept pulling up and said, "Do you give?"

"Never." Tobias growled, grabbing Jenny's head before using his powers to lift them both and spin them both. Dizzy, Jenny's grip loosened and Tobias yanked his leg out. He then let Jenny go and she hit the ground stunned. Quickly, Tobias pressed his rightforearm to Jenny's throat and pressed down while kneeling on her right arm to pin it and holding the other with his left hand.

"Not bad." Jenny said, immpressed. "But you left my legs free."

Jenny jerked up with her knees, hitting Tobias in the back and making him jerk forwards. She used the momentum of him moving forwards quickly. She jerked both legs up, flipping over him and his back. Once she had her feet down, she pushed down on Tobias back, making him face plant into the ground as she grabbed his right arm and twisted it behind him, making him yell in pain.

"Yield!" Jenny said firmly, pressing her knee in between Tobias's shoulder blades.

"All right, all right, I give!" Tobias shouted, muffled by the ground as he smacked it three times with his free hand.

"Good." Jenny said cheerfully, getting up off him and pulling him up.

"You've gotten better." Dante noted, stepping off the porch easily as they both looked. "Same clothes through."

Indeed, Jenny was wearing the same clothes she had the day of her 'birth,' a light green shirt tucked into camo pants and black combat boots.

"Well, what can I say? I was born in these." Jenny said, looking down at her attire fondly. "It's just comfortable."

"Didn't say there was anything wrong with it, just thinking out loud." Dante assured her.

"So, did you find out what you wanted?" Tobias asked, brushing off his shirt. Dante noticed it was a short sleeve black shirt with some red design on the front in some sort of pattern but he didn't notice it as much as the fact Tobias still had the wrist TARDIS on.

"Why do you still have that on?"

"Hhmm?" Tobias looked where Dante was looking. "Oh, River made it so unless she said a specific phrase it can't be removed. She got the idea from your own gizmo."

Dante nodded, smirking as he imagined the reaction of the creator of his Ultramatrix and it being called a 'gizmo.'

"So, what did Matsu say about reactions?" Jenny asked, wanting to know what he found out, and though she didn't know why, slightly worried for Kagari. They hadn't seen him in the past two days ever since he had met Jenny, not even at meals anymore.

"Nothing good."

He motioned to the porch and they all sat down, Dante explaining what he had learned and how dangerous it was for Sekirei who weren't being winged despite reaction, and what would happen if they weren't. They were silent for a minute until Tobias asked, "So what do we do?"

Dante sighed rubbing his chin. "Don't know. I guess we'll have to think of something before..."

"KYAAAAAAAAAA!" Uzume's voice screamed from inside the house.

"I had to say something!" Dante smacked himself as the three of them ran inside and up the stairs where Uzume's voice had come from. As they ran up, Dante noticed flickering light in the ceiling and he had a sinking feeling. As they got to the top, the feeling increased.

Uzume was standing with her back to them, hands shielding her face from a blaze that was in the hallway, and in the center was...

"Kagari!" Tobias yelled, seeing the fire user hunched over himself in the center of the blaze. "What are you doing?!"

"I-I can't stop it!" Kagari groaned, looking up, his eyes frightened. "The flames aren't listening!" He grunted and fell to his knees, hunched over again as the blaze grew stronger.

"Damn it!" Tobias growled before running towards him.

"Tobias!" Jenny cried as he went into the flames, but they didn't burn him. Tobias's had created a temporary vacuum around himself to keep the flames out. Tobias reached Kagari in the center and touched him on the shoulder, but things went wrong.

The flames burst out at him, knocking him back while destroying his concentration and subsequently, the vacuum. The flames hit him the chest and burned through his shirt, charring his chest as he screamed in pain.

"Tobias!" Dante shouted, running forwards and catching the user in his arms as he flew back, skidding slightly as he looked down. Tobias chest was now burned in several places, shiny red in some while patches were bleeding and a small patch the size of his hand was black and charred. The wind user was knocked out but his face still tensed in pain.

"Damn it." Dante growled as he saw the wounds. Kagari's powers were going into overdrive. At this rate it would burn down the whole inn, the only reason it hadn't already was because Kagari was using what little control he had to prevent it. He needed to do something.

Just as Dante was setting Tobias against the wall, He saw something zip past him and looked up to see Jenny running towards him.

"Jenny, stop!" Dante shouted, but she didn't listen as she dove into the flames. She was moving quickly through them until she had reached Kagari. She then did something that shocked everyone present.

She cupped Kagari's face, lifted it, and kissed him.

Kagari's eyes were wide as a red light formed on his back, the flames around him compressing and focusing on his back as they formed wings of red fire.

After a second, the wings smoldered out of exsitance, leaving the passage darker and quieter.

Jenny pulled back from Kagari, blushing bright red at what she had just done. She didn't know why she had done that, she had just...reacted.

"Well, that was...different." Dante said, temporarily forgetting the situation.

"Indeed."

Everyone turned around to see Miya was standing at the end of the hall, a bag in her hand and Musubi behind her.

"Miya." Dante said in relief. "About time you got home."

"What happened?" Miya asked as she set down the bag and quickly walked down, looking over them all.

"Kagari was just coming out his room," Uzume started explaining. "But he wasn't looking good and when I asked him if he was ok, his powers started going out of control."

Kagari managed to get to his feet, but his clothes were signed from the previous out of control use of his powers. "I'm sorry, I couldn't stop it, and Tobias..."

Dante knelt and looked over Tobias again, but he was still unconscious. Miya knelt next to him and frowned when she saw the burns.

"These need to be treated before they get infected. Bring him upstairs while I get the first aid kit."

"No, I'll take care of it. Jenny, get the door to my room." Dante said as he picked up Tobias, slinging an arm over his shoulder.

"What are you doing?" Miya asked, confused.

"I have a more effective way of healing him other then burn ointment and bandages, but I need privacy. Jenny, downstairs and get the door." They quickly went down the stairs, Dante being careful with Tobias as they hurried to Dante's room.

Jenny went and opened the door as Dante walked through and set Tobias on the couch, Jenny going beside him to quickly look over him herself. Dante went back to the he door just as something was stuck in it, preventing it from closing. He looked to see Miya holding her sheathed sword in the doorway, looking stern as she did.

"Miya," Dante asked pleasantly, "Could you please remove your sword so that I can shut the door?"

"Of course," Miya replied in a tone that was both pleasant and stern. "Just as soon as I come in as well." The woman took a single step forward, no doubt making an attempt at moving into the room before Dante could deny her access. She didn't get any further than that single step, however, as the teen she was currently at odds with stepped directly in her path.

"Miya, I'm sorry, but I need privacy to heal Tobias." Dante said.

"Jenny is in there." Miya said.

"Let me rephrase that last statement. I need privacy from people who don't know my past." Dante said coldly, getting impatient with the landlady. "You'll get in the way."

"I suggest you rethink what you just said," Miya spoke in a tone that was chillier than a winter in the frozen tundra. "This is my house, and while you are a guest in my house, you will follow the rules that I lay down and listen to me. If I tell you that I am going to be with you while you help Tobias, you are not going to stop me. Am, I, clear?"

Dante's eyes were flat and his gaze colder then space. "Crystal." He ground out, his patience finally reaching his limit. While the burns on Tobias would not kill him, they were still very painful, and the longer they remained unhealed the greater the chances were that they would get infected, particularly that painful looking third degree burn. And this woman was stopping him from doing his job. "However, you're still not getting in."

What happened next would be something that Miya would not be able to describe even if she tried. One minute, she was looking into Dante's eyes, and the next all she felt was incredible killing intent that was so strong it was almost a physical blow as she stumbled backwards and almost tripped over her own feet.

Looking up, she saw the black aura that surrounded him two days prior, but it was different this time. Aside from the chains that started to whither around near the point of thrashing, there was also a pair of green eyes looking from the blackness. The eyes narrowed before a grin appeared and gave a deep and evil chuckle, the sound making it feel like her blood had turned to solid ice. And then it was gone, disappearing so suddenly that Miya had to blink and wonder if she had just imagined it.

Without giving the woman time to recover and make another attempt at getting in his way, Dante spun on his heels and the door suddenly slammed shut behind him. The sound of a lock clicking into place signified that he had locked the door so she couldn't get in without breaking the door down.

"M-Miya," the scared voice of Uzume sounded in her ears. The lavenderette did not turn, she was too busy staring at the door that had just closed on her face. Her mind was busy trying to replay the last few seconds of that conversation in her mind, trying to help her discern what had just happened. Unfortunately, at the moment all she could think about was that thing that had appeared behind Dante when he had finally lost his patience with her.

"Wh – do you know what that was?" The question seemed to snap the woman out of her funk, and she finally turned her head to look at a wide eyed and extremely pale Uzume. So she had seen it too, then. Turning her head some more, Miya saw that it looked like everyone had seen the same thing she had. Musubi was shaking violently and looked terrified as she stared at the door, while Kagari was looking at the door terrified and breathing heavily, looking paler then a corpse

Turning back to Uzume, Miya shook her head. "I-I don't know what it was," her voice sounded just as stupefied as the rest, and maybe even a touch fearful as well. She looked back at the door, taking several deep breaths to calm herself down. While she felt and looked sufficiently calm, her eyes showed how furious she was at Dante for what he had done. She looked back at the door one more time, before spinning on her heels and walking down the hall, stopping outside the stair case.

"All I know was that was no Hanya." She said as she walked upstairs.

Dante sighed as he leaned against the door for a moment. He didn't like using his killing intent as he did, but it was nessescary. This situation, though terrible, could prove to be exactly what he had needed to move his plan along. But first things first, Tobias needed healing.

He went back to him and took out his sonic, scanning Tobias as he did.

"How bad?" Jenny asked, holding a hand to Tobias forehead to check his temperature.

"He has first degree burns to his entire torso, some second degree burns in patchs, but that black spot is a third degree burn. His ribs are slightly cracked and I think he might have some mild internal bleeding."

"So what are you going to use to heal him? We don't have any equipment."

"Never say never."

Dante pocketed his sonic and tapped the Ultramtrix a few times before pushing on the dial. A low breeze started going through the room with a tell tall sound of _**VWOOORP VWOOOORP VROOOOORP**_.

The TARDIS started flickering into sight in the middle of the room before settling into solidity. Dante went to it and pulled on the sign, showing the telephone. He picked up the earpiece and twisted the dial inside three times, then spoke into the mouth piece.

"Initiate protocol delta, alpha, sub sigma 7-4. Release nanogenes."

Dante hung up then and closed the door to the phone before pushing open the door to the inside. He instantly spotted a glowing cloud of gold glitter floating next to it. He stepped back and the cloud drifted out, letting Dante close the door.

"What are those?" Jenny asked as Dante went back to Tobias, the cloud following him.

"Nanogenes. Tiny microscopic machines that can heal tons of things. Burns are simple, they just need the right inspiration."

Dante held up his right hand, the cloud focusing on it and whirling around it for a second before Dante put his hand on Tobias's chest over the third degree burn. The nanogenes spread out over Tobias like a swarm, targeting his injuries and healing them with remarkable speed, making it look like the burns were melting and leaving behind flawless skin. They then sunk into Tobias for a second before coming back out and floating for a second above him, then flying back to the TARDIS. The door opened and admitted them before it closed with a slam, leaving the room silent.

Dante lifted his hand to see the third degree burn gone without a mark.

"He should be fine in a few minutes. He'll be tired, but fine." Dante took a moment to point his sonic at the TARDIS and flipped it on, the whirr filling the room while the TARDIS flickered and vanished, a second out of sync with time.  
With a tired sigh, Dante pocketed his tool, stood up from the bed and began walking to the door, Jenny choosing to stay with Tobias so she could explain what happened when he woke up.

Unlocking and opening the door, Dante made his way outside. The hallway was empty, well, mostly empty. It took the clinking of chains for him to realize that Akitsu was in the hall. The ice user had taken to sitting against the wall next to his room, her back straight as she sat in seiza. It seemed that the moment the door had opened, she had focused her attention on him, which would explain the clinking of her chains.

"Have you been here the whole time?" asked Dante as he turned to fully face the woman. He was surprised when she was back. He figured she'd still be at the park with Ku, but they must have come back only minutes ago and found out what had happened.

"Ah, yes," she admitted with little hesitation. Dante nodded to himself as he held out a hand to the snow woman. After a second or two, he realized that she hadn't taken it. Looking down he saw she was staring at the appendage in confusion, probably not quite sure why he was offering her his hand.

"Come on, Akitsu," he said, making a gesture with the hand he had offered.

"Let's get you up and than meet up with the others." Akitsu blinked, then slowly reached her hand out towards his. The moment their hands touched, her pale cheeks turned a light shade of pink.

Dante lips twitched ever so slightly as he pulled the ice user to her feet. The woman really did look quite adorable when she blushed like that. Normally she was pretty unflappable from what he had seen so far, and the only time she ever blushed seemed to happen when he was some way involved. Though he was surprised by how shy she could act, considering this was the woman who often times forgot to wear panties.

"So where are the other's?" asked Dante as he switched gears.

"Ah...upstairs." The ice user said in her normal monotone, but Dante detected a hint of unease.

"Well, let's go get them." Dante said as he walked down the hall to the stairs, the usual sound of chains following him.

Before he could actually beginning walking up the stairs, Dante heard the hurried sound of footsteps coming from the very direction he planned on going. Less then a second later, two of his Sekirei, Kusano and Musubi, appeared at the top of the stairs. The two stopped the moment they saw Dante, a pair of nearly identical smiles appearing on their faces, right before they launched themselves down the stairs and made to tackle Dante in a hug.

"Dante!" Musubi shouted out as she nearly bull dozed Dante over, running smack into him and wrapping her arms around him in one of her earth shattering hugs. Dante stumbled back several steps. Thankfully he was fairly used to the girls spontaneous bursts of affection, as well as just how ridiculously strong she was. If he wasn't, then Dante might have actually ended up getting seriously injured by the girl by accident.

Despite the creaking of his ribs, the blond began returning the girls hug, feeling happy for a split second.

"You're so amazing!" his first Sekirei continued crowing as did her utmost to smother him with affection. Down below Musubi, hugging on to his left leg, Kusano added her own 'Mmhmm!' of agreement with the older Sekirei's words while nodding her head. Dante blinked at the pair, nonplussed as he wondered what he had done that would warrant this kind of reaction from his girls. While part seemed to admire him a lot, he hadn't been around them for the past few hours. Naturally he was curious. "I can't believe you managed to heal Tobias like that! Your powers are so cool!"

Dante really should have known better than to tempt fate. Like a bucket of ice cold water being dumped on him, the timelord felt his entire body run cold. His mind blanked for a full second before rebooting and trying to put the words

Musubi had just spoken in a format he could understand.

Had she really just said what he thought she did? But how would she even know about the way he had healed Tobias? She knew he was powerful, but she wouldn't have been able to come to the conclusion that he was capable of healing people as well. No offense to Musubi, he liked her, he really did, but she wasn't very sharp when it came to using common sense and logic. So how had she managed to find out he had healed Tobias with his medical equipment? The only way she could have done that was if she had actually seen him at work, and the only way she could have seen him was if she was there or...

Matsu.

He forgot about her spy cameras. In his haste to help his friend, Dante had forgotten Matsu had cameras all over the house, which should include his room. So they had seen the TARDIS, the nanogenes, everything. The entire house, except for Akitsu and Kazehana, knew about his technology. But this situation went two ways. A curse...and a gift.

"Dante?"

Dante looked Musubi who looked confused. Glancing down, he saw Ku had the same look.

"Sorry, got to thinking about something. Where is everyone?"

"Upstairs." Musubi said, still confused.

Dante nodded, thinking.

"Musubi, why don't you and Ku go take a bath? Akitsu, help them with that please. I need to talk to Matsu."

Musubi nodded cheerfully "Ok!"

"Ah...yes."

Ku looked up at Dante. "Is something wrong?"

Dante looked down and grinned at the sight. Ku ws looking up under her bangs, her eyes wide and innocent. Combining the two, she looked extremely adorable.

"No. Just...something I have to take care off."

Ku nodded and cheered, "Ok!"

Dante chuckled as the trio walked down the hall. He then looked up the stairs and started walking up, pushing open the secret door without hesitation. It wasn't long before Dante found himself standing in front of the secret entrance to Matsu's room. Without a moments hesitation, the teen put a hand on the door and pushed it open as he walked in.

Matsu was there, just as he had expected. She was looking at him in a resigned manner, which meant she had somehow heard the conversation downstairs and knew that he was possibly not happy with her. It wouldn't surprise him if she had spy camera's set up there as well. A glance around the room also showed him the monitor she had used to spy on him when he healed Tobias. It still showed the inside of his room, and he could see the wind user lying on the couch but was stirring with Jenny helping him up. Judging from the angle of the camera, it was the perfect view to watch him when he called in the TARDIS and use the nanogenes.

The fact that she had not even bothered hiding the screen told him a lot, probably more than Matsu could even realize. Firstly, it was clear that Matsu already knew that he knew she had been spying on him, and obviously felt that by not hiding that fact she would show him that she hadn't meant any harm by it. Secondly, the expression on her face told him that whatever she had been expecting to see while spying on him, what he had done was not it. She was surprised by his technology most likely, or at least confused. Perhaps she was hoping that by proving she meant no harm when she had spied on him, he would answer the questions that were no doubt brimming in his mind.

Dante silently closed the door behind him and locked it to give them privacy. He then walked to Matsu, sat down while crossing his legs, and looked at her for a few minutes, making her squirm uncomfortably.

"Miya asked you to didn't she?" Dante asked calmly.

Matsu flinched and slowly nodded looking at the ground in shame.

"I'm not angry, but you should know why I refused to let Miya in the room. Did it not occur to you that perhaps, just like Miya, I have things about me that I wish to keep secret? What could have possibly possessed you to spy on me while I was attempting to help one our friends?"

Matsu winced, but didn't flinch away from him as he mentioned what he had been doing. "Dante is a very mysterious person." She said quietly, but Dante could feel through he bond on how guilty she felt about what she had done and invading Dante's privacy.

Taking off her glasses, a change seemed to overtake Matsu. Without the round lenses on her face seemed thinner, enhancing her already attractive features, and making her seem more mature than the childish Sekirei he had known for all of a day. The change was so startling that it was almost enough to make Dante forget about why he had come here in the first place. For a moment, all he could think about was how beautiful the woman before him was. A small shake of the red managed to help rid him of the thoughts, allowing him to focus on Matsu as she spoke.

"He seems to be taking things seriously and is doing his best to learn about the Sekirei Plan and be a good Ashikabi, but Dante is still a very mysterious person. We know so little about him. And his friends know so much about him."

Matsu paused, seemingly in thought as if she were trying to decide on whether or not she should admit the next part. The pause didn't last long.

"Dante doesn't know this, but when Jenny arrived, Minaka put almost all of MBI's resources into researching Dante and his friends."

Dante was surprised that the idiot had tried to figure out his friends were.

"He didn't find anything, but that just made him fixate even more. He's issued complete surveillance on all of them to learn about them."

Dante frowned. This bastard was going too far in trying to find out who they were and it was pissing him off. But he calmly asked, "And that just made you more curious didn't it?"

Matsu nodded quitely.

Dante sighed rubbing his face. He took a deep breath as he dragged down his skin before looking at her.

"Matsu, I was planning to tell you all who I was and where I from. I was planning it soon, in complete trust."

Matsu seemed to deflate under Dante's words, feeling more and more guilty.

"I still will, but right now, I'm only going to tell you one thing." Matsu perked up as Dante went on. "But this is strictly between us. You will not tell Miya, or Uzume, Kagari, anyone else, no matter what they say, or do. Am I clear?"

Matsu nodded eagerly and Dante sighed.

"Come here."

Matsu sat down across from him and Dante said, "Close your eyes."

Matsu did so, relaxing as she did. Dante lightly touched her temples and closed his eyes. He then put one thing in her mind. One phrase.

Timelord human hybrid.

Matsu jerked back from Dante likes she had burned as her eyes snapped open, looking at Dante in shock. Dante was calmly looking at her as he said, "I told you in that way for a reason. It shows how much I trust you to keep this a secret and not dig into my friends and my past. Understood?"

Matsu nodded mutely, not stopping her staring at him. Dante smiled and kissed her, holding it for a second before separating.

"I will tell you all. Soon. And when I do, it means I'm ready to share. Just be patient with me."

Matsu nodded again, though she was out of her shock and slowly looking normal again as she put her glasses back on.

"Thank you. Can you tell me where Miya is?"

"Miya is in her room at the moment." Matsu said, not looking at her monitors to confirm this.

"Thank you. Do me a favor too. Keep watching MBI and let me know if they're doing anything drastic, and see what you can do about the complete surveillance."

Matsu nodded. Dante smiled and gave her a kiss again.

"You're then best." He said as he got up and walked out of the room, waving over his shoulder as he did. Matsu smiled before thinking of the phrase now in her head.

'Timelord human hybrid...' She mused, thinking.

She had known he would be coming. When the knock on her door sounded within her room, Miya Asama already knew exactly who would be there. Standing up from where she had been sitting in front of the shrine dedicated to her husband, the landlady of Izumo Inn slowly walked over to the door. Her steps were measured, unhurried, as if she were not actually concerned about the oncoming conversation that was about to take place. Opening the door, Miya got her first good look at the person on the other side.

Dante was standing there calmly, hands in his pockets as he looked at the land lady. While outwardly he looked fine, Miya could see a slight look of betrayal in his eyes, and that small look cut her deeply.

"May I?" Dante asked calmly. Miya moved aside and let Dante in, closing the door behind him. He sat on one side of the small table and Miya sat on the other, both sitting calmly.

"You had to know, didn't you?" Dante asked levelly. Miya, to her credit, didn't flinch but rather replied calmly.

"As I said before, Dante," she started in a slow, careful voice, as if making sure that there was no way for the hybrid to misunderstand her words. "This is my house, and while you are a guest in this house, I expect you to obey me." Her purple eyes narrowed slightly. "Not only did you not obey me, but you deliberately made sure I could not follow you and locked me out."

"With good reason," Dante retorted, his own eyes narrowing.

"Perhaps," Miya admitted with a small shrug. "And Tobias may be you're friend, but he has become my friend as well as my tenant. I wanted to make sure you would not do anything untoward while tending him."

"I understand that, but it still does not give you the right to invade my privacy when I respected yours." Dante responded, snapping slightly which made Miya wince slightly.

"Is it really so bad that we know about your... abilities?" asked Miya, it was a question asked both out of curiosity and out of her desire to change the subject. She had a feeling that if she pursued the previous matter she would lose any argument they might have.

"No, but that's the problem!" Dante snapped, letting his temper sneak out slightly. "Because I was planning to tell you all when I was ready!"

Miya visibly flinched and felt like she had just been hit. Dante had been planning to tell them about himself?

Dante sighed. "Miya, I know more of your secrets then you can possibly imagine, but I respected your privacy and didn't pry. I was hoping you could respect my privacy as well."

Miya was falling deeper and deeper into guilt as Dante spoke. Dante was rather private person when it came to his past. Honestly, she was surprised he had let her know as much about him as he had, and his friends made her even more aware how little she knew about him. she was feeling worse then Seo at the moment, and that was close to rock bottom.

Dante stood up and bowed to her. "I am sorry for how I acted when I was healing Tobias. I will still tell you all about me when I'm ready. But for the time being, you'll have to earn back the trust you had before. Good day Miya."

He then left the room, leaving Miya to look down at the table in shame. She had ruined the trust Dante had in her by invading his privacy at a critical moment. She would admit when Dante had shut he door on her, she hadn't been thinking clearly. She had gone to Matsu to see what was happening in the room, and what she had seen had shocked everyone when he had healed his friend. Now she felt like she had stepped over the line in the worst way possible. She just hoped she could earn back the trust she had, or things would get very tense in Izumo Inn.

Dante walked up the stairs thinking deeply about what he had just done. He felt slightly guilty, but he knew things that others couldn't know until the time was right. If they did, things would go to hell faster than Musubi could polish off a meal.

Dante paused when he saw Uzume when he finally made it back up to the second floor. She was standing next to his door, her hips tilted slightly to the right, her left arm grasping her right one at the elbow as she no doubt waited for him. She looked nervous, he concluded. Her facial expression betrayed her, the way she shifted while waiting let him know how anxious she truly was. At the same time, there was a determination on her face that he had not seen for a while. Whatever she wanted to speak with him about, it was important enough that she was willing to cast aside her own fears to do so. The moment their eyes locked, her will seemed to form into a determined resolve. There was a hardened glint to them that Dante couldn't help but admire.

"Uzume," Dante acknowledged the girl as he walked up to his room. The busty Sekirei in the star shirt shifted again, choosing stand a bit straighter than she had been.

"Dante," she said, then hesitated before taking a deep breath. "Can we talk?"

Dante said, "I was going to check on Tobias and Jenny..."

Uzume said quickly, "Their fine. Jenny was bringing Tobias down to his room before you came up here. Please Dante, this is extremely important." Uzume said in a pleading tone.

Dante had a feeling he knew what this was about, and decided not to delay. He gestured for her to led the way and he followed her down down the hall towards the stairs.

Dante reentered the living room where Uzume was sitting with two empty cups and a pot of tea. Placing on cup in front of the brunette, he proceeded to pour some of the steaming liquid into it, then did the same to the cup he placed in front of the spot he would be sitting. Uzume grabbed the cup he offered in both hands and took a sip of her tea, her posture relaxing as she did so. When she removed the cup from her mouth, her enjoyment of the beverage Dante had made was clear on her face.

Dante smiled as he poured his own tea and sat down, taking a sip from his cup and enjoying the flavor mixing together in his mouth before swallowing. He absently watched Uzume as she sat before him. They were sitting on opposite sides of the table, which was pretty standard whenever they had meals. In fact, they had not sat on the same side in all the time they had been living together. Looking at the busty young woman, Dante could see that she was trying to bring up the conversation she wished to talk about, but was unsure how to do so. She would open her mouth every few seconds, look at him, and then promptly close it and look away. Just from that small action Dante already had an idea on what she wanted to discuss with him.

"So what did you want to talk to me about?" he asked after the silence seemed to stretch on longer than necessary. If Uzume was not going to bring up the subject, then it would be up to him to push their conversation forward. He was slightly tired, and though he refused to show weakness in front of Uzume. This was important.

"That healing ability you have," she flinched like she expected him to shout, but Dante calmly sipped his tea, motioning to go on. "I wanted to ask you about it."

Dante took a sip of his tea, eyes closed before setting the cup down. He opened his eyes, which were now steel as he said in a slightly cold voice, "I suggest you tread lightly Uzume. This conversation can easily be closed if something is asked that is intruding."

Dante was testing the girl. He knew what she had come to him for, but he wanted to make sure she had the steel in her to take any risk to take care of what she held precious.

The Sekirei in front of him shrunk, but only for a moment. Dante raised his right eyebrow, impressed and pleased when he saw the tomboys back straighten and her eyes harden in resolve once more. Though his warning had not been the most blunt, it hadn't been the most subtle either. If one were to look into Dante's eyes, they would easily see the fierce of gleam within them, the barely contained will to kill someone else should the situation call for it. The teen did not know if Uzume saw that, but it was clear that she had seen something. To still be willing to steel herself for what was to come was as admirable, and what he wanted to see.

"Can you heal more than just burns?" She asked directly. Inside Dante smiled. She was willing to risk her life for what she cared for. That was exactly what he had wanted to see and confirm the girl had.

"Yes." He said, the cold tone gone but his eyes still flat to make sure.

"And what about diseases?" Uzume asked, still staring at him with that intense look in her eyes. "Can you heal diseases as well?"

This time Dante allowed a slight smile on his face, though not enough Uzume would notice.

"Yes. The time it takes to treat them varies depending on the disease and how far it's progressed, but yes, I can heal those."

The answer seemed to be enough for the Sekirei and she abruptly stood, Dante doing so as well out of instinct.

Uzume suddenly pushed the table out of her way, then suddenly sunk down on her knees while placing both hands on the floor and lowering her head on it. The position was called Dogeza, and was a prostrated position only used when showing the highest displays of reverence or making the most earnest of requests. It also told him that he had been right in what Uzume had been going for when she had asked him about his healing.

"Please, Dante," she began, her voice no longer firm or determined, but desperate and despairing. "Please help me save my Ashikabi!"

"I have a feeling this conversation is going to be a bit longer than our usual ones," he said, his words making the Sekirei that he was not bonded to look up at him. "And important to everyone. How about I get them before you explain what this is about?"

Uzume nodded and Dante pulled her to her feet as they both left the room, Dante letting a smirk grace his face as he led the way out.

Time for Uzume to get back her Ashikabi.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

"I have no idea how much you all know about me and my Ashikabi." Uzume said, poking at her food and not making eye contact with anyone at the table.

Everyone was sitting at the tables except for Miya, who hadn't come out of her room since her talk with Dante, but everyone else was present.

Kazehana had come into the inn about twenty minutes ago and had demanded where Tobias was. Once Dante told her he was in his room, she had gone there without stopping. Turned out Kazehana had been at a bar on the other side of the city, but had felt the pain of being burned through her bond with Tobias. She had stupidly used her powers to get across the city as fast as she could, but Dante couldn't find it in himself to scold her. If his Sekirei had been hurt and he felt it through the bond, he would get there as fast as he could, consequences be damned. He had heard Kazehana actually crying slightly while Tobias was comforting her when Dante had gone to get them, but now she looked fine.

Tobias was sitting next to Kazehana on the right side of the table, in a new black shirt and looked tired but not enough to hinder his ability to follow along.

Dante had scanned him and as he expected everything was normal, though Tobias just seemed...down.

Jenny and Kagari were sitting next to them, and it was an interesting sight. Kagari looked stoic except for a slight blush on his cheeks and the fact he kept glancing to his left at Jenny, who surprisingly looked...embarrassed, looking down at the table with a very clear blush on her face, which frankly shocked Dante. He had never seen Jenny like this before.

Surprisingly in between the two pairs was Matsu, who had apparently seen what had happened and come down to join them. The reason she wasn't sitting near Dante was because there were no close spots left.

Dante and his other Sekirei were sitting on the left side of the table, Dante in the middle, with Akitsu on his right staring at him like normal, Musubi on his left, and Ku on his lap, listening as Uzume told her tale.

"My Ashikabi, Chiho," Uzume began, her voice slow and carefully worded. "She has a very rare illness that requires her to remain in the hospital for treatments."

"That's terrible." Tobias said looking at her. It was the first time he had spoken since he had been healed and he seemed more quite.  
Musubi agreed more verbally.

"That's so sad!" She cried. Turning to the girl, Dante was not surprised to find her holding her hands under her chin, her eyes glistening with unshed tears and looking very much like a kicked puppy. She gave the only other brunette in the room a teary look as she sniffed. "To be separated from your Ashikabi like that must be so horrible."

"Huh?" Uzume looked slightly taken aback, probably by the kicked puppy look she was being blasted with more than the girls words. Musubi always had very expressive facial expressions. "W-Well, it's not so bad," she started, before her face adopted a sad smile. "Though I do wish she could be here, that way I could be with her all the time." Dante raised an eyebrow, wondering if she even realized she had just given away her Ashikabi's gender. Not that it mattered, considering what she wanted from him.

"Heheheheh," Matsu's perverted giggling interrupted the dreary moment. Her glasses glinted ominously in the light as she adjusted them, all that while that creepy smile was on her face. "The love of an Ashikabi and her Sekirei. I wonder if Uzume and her Chiho have done any experimentation together."

Tobias face palmed as he had those thoughts put in his head, though Kazehana was smirking. Jenny and Kagari both cracked smiles at the joke.

Uzume's grin was that of a cat that ate a canary. "Not telling," she teased, seemingly forgetting for a moment just why she was here. The perverted hacker gave the other Sekirei a pout and opened her mouth, no doubt in an attempt to see if she couldn't get some more details out of the brunette.

"She's is staying at is Hyamaki Hospital isn't she?" Dante asked, interrupting the conversation before Matsu could cause it to degenerate further. Despite his offer to listen to Uzume and her request, he was still rather exhausted and wanted to get this out of the way so he could sleep.

Uzume grimaced as she finally remembered just what they were supposed to be talking about. "Yes."

Dante nodded. "Higa Izumi owns that hospital. Furthermore, I'm guessing he's trying to gain some form of control over you by threatening your Ashikabi."

The way the star shirted Sekirei grimaced with each point the blond hit was more than enough to tell him he was on the money. To his left, Musubi gasped, her hand going to her mouth and her eyes widening. On his other side, Kusano had begun making an angry 'huuuu!' noise, apparently even a small child like her had been able to understand what I was saying. A clinking of chains also let the blond know that Akitsu had shifted in her seat, he had no need to look back to see that her face would be as inexpressive as it always was. He also didn't need to know that his theory had made the former scrapped number angry.

Tobias had growled while Kazehana frowned deeply, Kagari looking coldly angry and Jenny irritated.

The only one who didn't react was Matsu, at least not in the same way as the others. Instead her lips had been drawn into a thin line, her face once more serious and mature. Dante didn't need to be a genius to know what she thought about the situation he had just depicted.

Not that Dante couldn't understand, and even empathize with their anger. The bond between a Sekirei and their Ashikabi was sacred to them. Musubi had always been so adamant when speaking about the bond and love, and while the others might not be as expressive with their words as she was, it was clear to anyone with even meager observational skills that they all thought the same thing. To try and undermine the bond formed between a Sekirei and her Ashikabi like Higa apparently was with Uzume was likely the ultimate form of sacrilege in their eyes.

And it was in his. He had fought many people who manipulated others through those they loved, and it never failed to infuriate him on how they used feelings to reach their own sick goals.

"I take it the treatment for her illness is expensive." Tobias asked, leaning forwards on both arms and clearly thinking.

"Extremely expensive." Uzume admitted, looking like a wilted flower that had been exposed to the sun for too long and not given enough water. "And the only hospital who is capable of providing the cure is Hyamaki Hospital..."

"Which is owned by Higa Izumi." Dante finished.

"Who is this guy?" Jenny asked, knowing the person they were talking about was a scum bag, but nothing else.

"Higa Izumi is the official Ashikabi of the East, and a bastard to boot." Dante said, folding his hands. "He's the CEO of a large company that's in direct competition with MBI and one of the richest men in the city. He's also one of the most powerful players in the Sekirei plan."

Matsu nodded and added, "Higa Izumi is well known for forcibly winging Sekrei and using them coldly and without feeling. Truly a dangerous player."

"I don't understand then. I doubt that Higa's the only one capable of providing aid to your Ashikabi," Jenny addressed Uzume. "While I don't know a whole lot about MBI, I do know from Dante that they have a hospital of their own that anyone partaking in the Sekirei Plan can use for free."

Uzume's grimace spoke almost as much as her words. "I can't use the hospital sponsored by MBI because I was the one who helped Matsu escape when she fled the labs." Everyone glanced from Uzume to Matsu, who had the decency to look sheepish.

That made sense, actually. Matsu wasn't a fighting type so it should have been impossible for her to escape MBI without help. While most peope first thought that perhaps Miya had helped her out, Dante had never been sure of that. Miya was powerful, there was no doubt in his mind that she could have helped Matsu. On the other hand, because Miya was so powerful he also had no doubt MBI would have been forced to send their entire army after the woman and end up destroying half of Shinto Teito in the process. This made a lot more sense when compared to that.

"Ah," everyone turned to look at Akitsu who was now staring at Uzume with her head tilted in curiosity. "Thank you," she said, causing everyone to blink.

"Thank you?" Uzume inquired wonderingly. She blinked several times, as if trying to figure out just why the ice user was thanking her. Eventually, she seemed to give up and just decided it would be better to ask. "Why are you thanking me?"

"Escape." It was a single word, but while it took most of the people in the room a while to figure out, namely Kusano, Musubi, and Uzume, while Tobias, Jenny, Dante, and Matsu were able to easily deduce the girls meaning within a few seconds.

"Wait," Matsu said, sounding shocked. "You mean when we fled MBI you managed to escape as well?"

"Yes," Akitsu's single word answer was accompanied with a nod.

"Well, it does explain how you were able to escape," Matsu commented mostly to herself, her thoughts turning introspective. "When Matsu left MBI Matsu had caused a lot of chaos when she shut down the MBI mainframe and planted several bugs in their security program. It would be easy for someone like Akitsu to escape in the confusion."

Looking away from Matsu and Akitsu, Dante decided to focus once more on Uzume and what he had learned thus far. "So because MBI might try something against you and your Ashikabi as retribution for helping Matsu you can't go to them. Which of course, leaves Higa as the only option. Given that you are asking me to save your Ashikabi, I am guessing that he's trying to force you into doing something you don't want to, or perhaps something that your Ashikabi would disapprove of."

"He-heh," Uzume's customary chuckle was her answer, though it was lacking in the amusement it normally did. "You're good," she admitted, before nodding.

"Yes, it was a little before you came here that Higa began pressuring me into being his bloodhound in order to ensure that my Ashikabi continues getting her treatments. He wants me to terminate various Sekirei from the game without letting MBI know who terminated them."

"That's pretty impressive thinking, Dante," Matsu praised him, her face slightly flushed as she stared at the teen longingly. It seemed that intelligence was a big turn on for the red head. Not that surprising given her entire power as a Sekirei is based on gathering and interpreting information. Dante ignored the look for the moment as he leaned back, letting his arms rest behind his back.

This information would be incredibly valuable to anyone else, not only would he be learning more about Higa Izumi as a person, but he was learning about the mans plans in general. But Dante had already gained a clear picture in his mind of what Higa might want for him. Yes, with Dante reputation among Unwinged Sekireis it was easy to see what Higa would want with him, and Tobias. Having the Miracle Worker and the Airbender under his control would increase his influence and power substantially, not to mention the powerful Sekirei Dante and Tobias were bonded to would be his to control as well. Too bad for him, Dante wasn't about to let him and his friends to be manipulated. Ever.

"I... I can't believe someone would use the love between Uzume and her Ashikabi to force her to do something so cruel!" Dante's train of thought was interrupted when Musubi spoke out, slamming both hands on the table as she did so. Everyone looked over at the naïve fist fighter, not quite surprised, but definitely wary all the same.

With good reason too, Dante decided as he looked at his Sekirei. Musubi looked different now, much different than she usually did. It was still her face, still her knock out body, this was not a physical change of any kind, but a metaphorical one, a change in the self that reached far deeper than physical appearance. The brunette fist fighters eyes were blazing with an intensity that it did not have before, even more so then when Musubi had confronted Seo about how he continued letting his Sekirei fight against Unwinged Sekirei. It was a look that was decidingly NOT Musubi.

The feelings behind it were also different. Before, when she had been stating her disapproval for Seo's continued inaction about his Sekirei fighting Unwinged Sekirei before they had a chance to find love, it had simply been that, disapproval. This, this was anger, white hot and enough to melt even the feircest of metal. And Dante could feel it, the anger his Sekirei held towards someone who would not just break the bonds of love between a Sekirei and her Ashikabi, but use it for their own vile purposes.

Dante frowned. This change was something he understood, yet at the same time didn't. He knew why she was like this, but not how. It was like when the Doctor had been obsessed with finding out how Clara had been in three time periods, dying twice in two of them. Being the Immpossible Girl.

"So I take it you wish for me help you rescue your Ashikabi and heal her up with my... powers so that Higa will no longer be able to hold any influence over you?" Dante said.

"Yes," Uzume said, her voice a desperate plea. "Please help, Dante. I don't have anyone else to turn to. You may be the only person in the entire world who can save my Chiho."

Dante was touched by the affection Uzume had said that name in. He looked around the table at Jenny and Tobias. Tobias looked at Dante, fire in his eyes that showed anger and determination. He nodded slightly, showing he would support Dante if he agreed.

Jenny had the same looked, but female fury was added to hers. She was a new Ashikabi, but she knew from Dante how sacred the bond was and how wrong it was that Higa was using it like this. She wanted to deprive this man of his influence over Uzume.

"What would you have us, your Sekirei, do now, Ashikabi?" Musubi asked, her voice mature, holding a quality that Musubi simply shouldn't be able to produce.

Dante had to admit, he kind of liked it.

"Whatever decision you choose, know that we," here she swept her hand out to encompass the other three he had managed to wing as she finished talking. "We'll follow you."

And just like that, the mature demeanor, the steel in her voice and eyes was gone, disappeared as if it had never been there. Musubi blinked, looking around in confusion as she noticed all of the eyes staring up at her. "Um, hello?" She said brightly. "Has something happened? Why are you all looking at me like that?"

Dante narrowed his eyes. It was gone again. But now wasn't the time to pursue this.

"Uzume."

His voice got everyone's attention as he looked at the star shirted Sekirei.

Dante could tell Uzume was holding her breath as she waited for him to speak. He smiled and nodded. "I'll do it."

Uzume couldn't seem to understand what Dante had just said as she stuttered,

"W-what?"

Dante stood, walked to her and kneeled next to her, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I'll heal Chiho." He said, still smiling.

The message sank in finally and Uzume's eyes teared up. She threw herself at him in a hug which he returned as Uzume sobbed her relif. "Thank you." She sobbed out.

Dante shh'd her and said, "It's ok. It's ok."

Nobody spoke until Uzume had finished and was able to straighten, wipping her eyes and sniffing.

Tobias said, "That hospital Uzume's Ashikabi is at, that was the one Higa wanted to meet at on Sunday. That's in two days."

Dante stood up and started pacing. "Yes it is. And the fact he wants to meet there can work to our advantage."

He then turned to Matsu. "Matsu, I'm going to need to use your computers."

Minutes later everyone was in Matsu's room while Dante was looking over the monitors.

"Higa is egotistical, but smart. He's like a chess player, seeing moves as their made, moves before they're made." Dante explained as he moved a monitor to get to the wiring behind it.

"He's controlling." Tobias clarified. "He wants something he'll go to the end of the earth to get it."

"Exactly. And that's going to work in our advantage." Dante explained as he plugged something in.

"That's your 'I've got a crazy plan that just might work' voice." Jenny said nervously.

"Is that bad?" Kagari asked, noting the tone in her voice as well as feeling her nervousness.

"I have nightmares about that voice." Jenny admitted. "But only because those crazy plans actually work."

"Ok, all wired up." Dante put the monitor back in place and picked up the key board, tapping some keys.

"What's he doing?" Kazehana whispered to Tobias. He smirked and crossed his arms as he shook his head. "He's showing off."

Dante set down the keyboard and stepped back. "Let's get this show in the road."

He clapped his hands twice and the monitors all went blank. The room was mysteriously dark with he light of the screens.

"Dante?" Musubi said nervously, but he rose a finger and said, "Wait for it."

The screens all started glowing green and flashing binary code across the screens.

"Here we go." Dante said with a grin.

Dante clapped his hands together again and pulled them apart, causing something incredible to happen.

The data began leaving the screen, gathering in the middle in front of him in an or as the data starting changing into computer code.

Matsu looked likes she was about to have a heart attack as she looked at what Dante was doing.

Uzume breathed out, "What on Earth?"

Dante lightly touched the orb and it exploded, covering them all in a data dome. He held both hands out to his side and started manipulating the data quickly, moving and owning windows.

"The building in question I've been studying ever since we ran into Higa's thugs and he requested us there. Here's the blue prints."

Dante held both hands in a picture square before expanding them, pulling up the plans of the hospital.

"The building was recently emptied except for one patients room, Uzume's Ashikabi Chiho."

Dante pushed the plans behind him so the others could see it as he kept manipulating data.

"Higa has been making sure she gets treatment, and I hacked the hospital records to get specifics on the disease."

"How long have you been working on this?" Kagari asked in awe as he looked at what Dante was doing as he pulled up the records.

"A week." Dante said causally before going on. "The disease is genetic, caused by a mutation in the genes that resulted in an imbalance in the blood. Unless Chiho would keep getting the treatment, she would suffocate from the inside out. As such, she's kept in bed in order reduce her oxygen usage."

Jenny stepped forwards, as well as Tobias as they looked over the data. "How long would she last without treatment?" Jenny asked.

"A month. After that the blood wouldn't be able to hold oxygen anymore and she'd die." Dante said.

"Can nanogenes cure something like this?" Tobias asked, looking back at Uzume to see how she was reacting, but she looked fine, if a bit pale.

"Easily. Time to treat it would be twenty minutes, so we'd have to do it here, and Chiho would need physical therapy to rebuild her muscles, but, she'd live and be completely cured." Dante finished as he ran a simulation to check. It confirmed it. Dante shut down everything by clapping his hands three times.

The data flowed back into the computer and the monitors shut down, black for a second before flickering back on, the screens normal.

Everyone was silent for a minute before Tobias hit Dante's arm. Hard.

"Ow!" Dante complained, rubbing his arm. "What was that for?"

"You having to show off." Tobias snorted. "You couldn't just use a key board?"

"I agree with him actually." Jenny said. "Holographic system was showing off."

"You people have no sense of enjoyment." Dante sighed. "In any case, everyone get to bed. It's 9 at night, and we're going to be busy tomorrow."

"With what?" Musubi asked.

Dante turned and smirked.

"Training and planning."


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

CRACK, CRACK, CRACK-CRACK-CRACK, SNAP!

"Ow! Damn it!" Tobias shouted as he hopped on one leg, holding the other as it felt like it was burning. "Do you have to hit that hard!?"

It was the 9:00 A.M. the next day and a tense one too. After the events of last night, most everyone had been on edge, excluding Ku, Akitsu, and Musubi. Ku was a child, Akitsu was calm and collected as always, and Musubi just didn't get nervous. The day had started off with a subdued breakfast for a few reasons. Mostly because Miya and Dante had been in the same room. Miya looked the same as ever, but her eyes had lost their luster, looking like dirtied glass rather than the normal radiant purple. She had simply made breakfast and served everyone, only saying hello to Dante which he responded to calmly. Everyone had been too scared to say anything.

After that, people went their own ways. Ku went to take a bath with Musubi, Kazehana was out like normal, and Uzume had retired to her room, while Akitsu, Kagari, Matsu, and Jenny were watching Dante and Tobias spar in preparation for tomorrow in case, or rather when, things turned ugly. The two were fighting with the wooden swords Miya kept around the house and Dante was wiping the floor with Tobias.

"The enemy Sekirei won't go soft, why should I? Again." Dante said in a tone that wouldn't take no for an answer.

Tobias shook his leg to alleviate the burning before doing what Dante said. They both stood 8 feet apart, holding their wooden training swords in both hands, the tip eye level. Neither moved for a second before Tobias spun on heel, gathering the air around his sword and swinging, sending a shockwave of air at Dante. Dante ducked backwards under it, the blast just touching his nose before it flew past and hit the wall, exploding into a air blast.

Tobias rushed forwards and swung his sword, but Dante got back up and blocked the sword, the collision making a loud CRACK!

Dante started swinging then, moving his own sword at extremely high speeds as he swung at Tobias relentlessly. They traded blows back and forth before Dante swung at Tobias's legs. He jumped over the blow and swung at Dante's head as he did, only to be blocked again. Frustrated, Tobias jumped back several times to get distance before clenching a fist and skidding to a stop.

"Divine punishment of the wind god!" Tobias shouted as he punched the air, sending the shcokwave at Dante. He calmly stood there as it approached, and when it was almost on top of him, swung his sword and split it in half down the middle, the two halves going on either side of him and colliding with the wall again.

Before Tobias could react, Dante pushed off from the ground, closing the distance in an instant and swung, hitting Tobias on the right knee.

"Ow!" He shouted again as He started hopping on one leg again. "What the hell are you made of!?"

"That's what I'm wondering." Kagari muttered as Tobias started swearing under his breath. "Dante' speed and power are incredible, too good to be human."

"Matsu agrees." The red head said, adjusting her glasses to make them flash in her scientific way. "Dante's power is much greater then can be produced by a human body, and yesterday proved his intelligence is much higher then a normal human."

"Yep, he's a mystery." Jenny said as Tobias was forced to spar with Dante again.

"Except to me."

"You won't tell us anything?" Matsu pouted.

Jenny looked at Matsu sharply. "It's not my place to Matsu. He said he'll tell you in his own time, and he happenes to be a very important friend to me. I'm not betraying his trust, unlike some."

Matsu visably wilted at the implied jab and looked down at the ground.

"Jenny, wasn't that a little harsh?" Kagari asked, looking at his Ashikabi. Jenny glared at him but Kagari didn't do anything but stare back until Jenny sighed.

"I'm sorry Matsu, I'm just touchy about privacy when it comes to Dante's and my past. Tobias too."

The perv-Sekirei seemed a bit better with the apology and she nodded. They turned their attention back to the fight as Dante swept Tobias legs out from under him and made him hit the ground.

"Damn it!" He growled, getting up. "You know how to hurt a guys ego, you know that?"

"Don't be discouraged, you're actually quite good." Dante said, holding out a hand to Tobias. He grabbed it and was pulled up as Dante went on, "The problem is I'm much better. But against a regular Sekirei you'd do just fine. I do have a question though."

"Shoot."

"Why don't you just try suffocating me?" Dante asked, curious why the air user wasn't using a basic move like that.

Tobias flinched and looked away. "I don't like using that ability unless I have to. Knowing I'm suffocating and possibly killing some by taking away something basic, it just makes me feel...wrong." Tobias admitted, rubbing his arm.

Dante could tell this was a touchy subject and patted the other teen on the shoulder. "It's fine, I ws just curious."

Tobias looked back at Dante as he asked, "Now, how many wind attacks do you have?"

"A handful. Right now I have divine roar, punishment, and fist of the wind god. I'm trying to think of others."

"All of them are long range?" Dante asked, interested in the names since they gave him an idea on the attacks.

"Roar and punishment are, fist is a close range attack. It's also my one hit KO move."

Dante was interested. "Would you mind showing it?" He asked. It would be best if he knew Tobias's techniques so he could point out strong points and flaws.

Tobias hesitated before saying, "I'd need something to hit."

Dante thought for a second. "Wait here for a minute."

He handed Tobias his training sword and went to the porch.

"Something wrong?" Kagari asked as Dante headed for the door.

"No, just need to grab something." Dante replied as he headed inside, Akitsu standing and following him in.

"She really follows him everywhere?" Jenny asked, not sure if that should be considered cute, loyal, or just plain creepy.

"Yep." Kagari confirmed. "But it's not surprising really. Akitsu is loyal to Dante for a very good reason."

"How so?" Jenny asked, looking at her Sekirei. She still couldn't get over the fact the man next to her was bonded to her in such a...intimate way. It didn't help she found him good looking, though she didn't let that show.

"Akitsu was a scrapped number, a number that was never supposed to have a Ashikabi." Kagari explained. "Think about that. You're told you'll never find the one person you are supposed to be bonded with, to love and be loved by, ever. You're supposed to spend you're entire life alone."

Jenny couldn't help the shiver that went down her spine. It just sounded so...wrong. To be alone and unloved like that, to be seen as scrapped. Broken.

"That's why Akitsu follows Dante everywhere. He saved her from that fate." Kagari looked out at the horizon as he finished. "And it sounds like he's trying to stop the same thing from happening in the Sekirei Plan. From Ashikabi and Sekirei being torn away from each other."

"Damn right I am."

They all turned around to see Dante standing in the door way with Akitsu behind him, holding...

"Where did you get a watermelon?" Kagari asked, looking at the large fruit under Dante's right arm. He knew for a fact they didn't currently have any watermelons in the house.

"You don't want to know." Dante replied as he closed the door behind him after Akitsu had come out. Dante walked to Tobias and held it up, asking, "Will this work?"

Tobias took it and weighed it in his hands, looking it over before lightly rapping the skin. He nodded.

"It'll work, but we're going to need something to hold it in place so I can properly show you."

Dante tapped his chin for a minute, thinking.

"Got an idea. Akitsu." He turned to the ice user. "Need you to make a block of ice, tall as me and about..." Dante held his arms out 2 feet on either side, indicating 4 feet. "...this wide."

Akitsu nodded. The air near Dante started getting colder rapidly, making mist for a second while not on the ground, frost creeped over the ground before solidifying into ice in a square 4 feet wide. The ice then started rising upwards quickly until a solid block of ice as tall as Dante.

"Ok, now clear out a hole this large, deep enough to put in the melon." Dante asked, tracing an outline with his finger tip, chest high. Akitsu did as he asked, molding the ice to make the hole.

"Perfect. Thank you Akitsu." Dante smiled at her.

"Ah." Akitsu blushed slightly, adding a pink hue to her cheeks. "You're welcome."

Dante took the melon and put it in the whole, where it fit perfectly.

"Tobias, the floor is yours." Dante said, going back to the porch and crossing his arms.

Tobias focused for a second on the melon before nodding. He put his left foot in front of the other, turning his body so his left shoulder faced forwards, cocking his right fist and holding the fore arm with his other hand, concentrating.

Dante felt the air around him starting flow and guessed Tobias was concentrating it on his fist. Three seconds after concentrating, Tobias muttered, "Divine fist of the wind god."

He punched the melon directly, causing the skin to dent in and a small explosion of wind burst outwards, but the melon itself stayed intact.

"Interesting." Kagari noted. "What would that due to a normal person?"

"I'll show you." Tobias grunted as he pulled out the melon out of the hole.

"Don't need the ice anymore, thank you Akitsu."

Akitsu nodded and the ice melted into a pool of water as Tobias carried the melon to the porch and set it down.

"Anybody got a knife?" Tobias asked.

"Here." Jenny pulled up her left pant leg to see a two inch knife in a sheath strapped around her leg. She pulled it out, flipped it, and offered the hilt to Tobias.

"Thank you." Tobias said as he took the knife.

"Why does Jenny have a knife strapped to her leg?" Matsu asked curiously.

"Old habits, military training, take your pick." Jenny said easily as he tugged the pant leg back down.

Tobias cut off a shallow peice of the melon on top, pulling it up to show the inside had been reduced to juice.

"So, the real terror of that punch isn't just the power behind the punch, the damage is internal." Dante noted, dipping a finger into the pool of juice.

"Yep. Depending on how much I charge it, it could cause minor interal bleeding, fracture a rib or two, but if I fully charge it, it'll reduce your insides to putty." Tobias told them. "I normally don't go that far though, I just go with the internal damage. Doesn't kill normally, just hurts like hell."

Dante drew his finger out and looked at it before shaking it. "How long does it take to fully charge?"

"Ten seconds. I normally go with two or three."

Kagari shook his head. "You two are unbelievable, you know that?"

"Been told that a lot." Dante said. "Overall, it's a good technique to use if you want to end a fight quickly, but the main draw back as the need for close range and charging time. Only use it against a close range oppentent." He advised.

Tobias nodded. "Planned too," he replied as he handed Jenny her knife back. She cleaned and then sheathed it.

"Ok, let's head upstairs. Got some planning to do. And Tobias, see if you can go and find Kazehana, were going to need her too."

The wind user nodded again. "On it." He jumped, using his powers to go into the air again before taking off running on it, similiar to how he had when he first arrived.

"We've got about.." Dante checked his wrist for the time. "...27 hours before the meeting tomorrow. Let's to get planning."

The group had retired to Matus's room after Tobias returned with Kazehana who had been holding a bottle of sake.

"Can you stop drinking for five minutes?" Dante had asked Kazehana, irritated as she took a another swig 2 hours later.

"Yes. I just don't want to." Kazehana responded, taking a swig.

"Why do you drink anyways?" Tobias asked, concerned for his Sekirei and her apparent addiction.

Kazehana stopped for a second and seemed to ponder her Ashikabi's words. Everyone watched her curiously before she shrruged. "Don't know exactly."

She made to swig again before the bottle was yanked from her hands. She blinked as she saw it floating in front of her before it floated to Tobias's hand, who looked stern.

"You drink yet you don't know why?" He asked, making sure he had heard that right. Kazehana nodded.

"Ok. Be right back." Tobias said angrily as he got up.

Tobias left he room for a second, then came back but the bottle was gone.

"Where'd you put my sake?" Kazehana asked.

"Out the window. You're not drinking if you don't even know why you do," Tobias told her firmly. "If you can give me a legitimate reason why you do, then I'll let you drink again. Until then, you're going sober."

Everyone stared at Tobias as he sat back down again, until he said snappily, "We still planning or are you going to stare at me until tomorrow?"

Dante decided it would be best if they got back to planning before Tobias did something he regretted.

After they had hammered out the details, Dante left the room and ran right into Musubi.

"Oh, Dante!" She said cheerfully. "How did it go?"

Dante shrruged. "Planning is always complicated. Personally I stay away from them most of the time since they normally go wrong to unforeseen variables."

Musubi nodded but Dante knew what he had just said went through one ear and out the other. He decided to try something diffrent.

"Musubi, would you be willing to spar with me?"

Musubi's eyes widened. "Really?" She asked excitedly.

"Sure, need to kill time, and it could be fun."

"Yes!" Musubi hugged Dante as she chanted "yes" over and over.

"I think you just made her day." Tobias noted, walking out.

"Ya think?" Kazehana asked sarcasticly, still upset Tobias was making her go sober.

"Ok, Musubi, how about we go into the garden and start?" Dante asked while trying to gt out of the death trap that was her hug.

Musubi dragged Dante behind her as she ran down the stairs and out the door, stopping when they had gotten there.

"Ready Ashikabi?" Musubi asked excitedly as she got into a stance.

"Hang on a minute." Dante stretched and popped his arms, neck, and back before nodding and getting into a stance, one foot forward, a hand behind his back, and his other in front with the palm facing him.

Everyone else, including Ku who had come to see what the commotion was, stood from the porch watching.

"Where's Miya?" Jenny asked, noticing the landlady's absents.

"Her room."

Everyone looked to see Uzume coming from inside and looking depressed. "She won't come out other then to do her chores and making meals. She refuses to talk to me."

Kagari frowned. Seemed the conversation she and Dante had had cut her deeply, but he didn't have a chance to think about it as the spar started.

Musubi blasted forwards and aimed a punch at Dante's chest, but he batted it aside with his outstretched hand. Musubi used the momentum to fuel a spin kick at his head, but he leaned back just enough for it to miss his skin by an inch, taking the chance to push Musubi off balance.

She stumbled back a few steps before she charged again, but for all her punches, Dante either dodged by inches or knocked them aside so they did miss. Musubi's attacks were fast and well thought out, but Dante didn't even look tired.

"That's incredible. He's not even moving from that spot." Kazehana shook her head. "What is he?"

"Unique." Jenny and Tobias chorused, watching the fight with a disinterested look on their faces.

"Hope he wraps it up soon." Tobias said. "I want to practice using my powers."

And wrap up it did. As Musubi tried to punch Dante, he grabbed the arm, twisted it while turning and flipped her over him. She hit the grounds with a whoof before Dante moved quickly, and pinned her down, placing a knee on her right arm, holding down her left, and smirking at her as she gaped at him.

"Checkmate."

Tobias had a feeling he knew what was next. "Jenny, plug your ears." He stated, pluging his own with his index fingers. Confused, Jenny did as he asked, and just in time.

"EEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHHH!" Musubi squealed in delight just then, and the sound was high enough to sound like nails on a chalk board.

"Ow!" Dante instinctively got off Musubi as he held his ears, which were now ringing. He then got tackled to the ground as Musubi flying hugged him.

"That ws incredible!" Musubi cried happily as she straddled her Ashikabi. "I was trying my hardest but I couldn't touch you! That was amazing Dante!"

Dante blinked for a few seconds to get rid of the stars that had resulted from his head getting slammed to the ground. After they cleared and he could see the ecstatic face of his Sekirei, Dante had to take a minute to admire the view. Musubi had her back to the sun and the light coming from behind her truely made her look divine. Innocence and beauty perfectly balanced to make something unique.

"Dante?"

He shook himself from his thoughts and looked at Musubi who looked confused.

Again.

"I'm glad you enjoyed the spar Musubi, but, uh, can I please get up now?"

Dante asked, trying not to focus on the feeling of Musubi pressing into him.

Musubi looked down and realized their position. "Oh, ok."

She got off Dante and let him get up, brushing himself off.

"Well, I have to say I'm rather pleased." Dante said. "You're reflexes are good, strong fast attacks, and you can link them toghther. Your training is coming along well."

Musubi bounced gleefully. "Thank you Dante. I've been having fun training with the landlady." She seemed to think of something as she pressed a to finger her chin. "Um, where is Miya?"

Dante paused. How did he answer this in a way Musubi would understand but not ask too many questions? Truth be told, he was slightly worried about Miya. Like everyone else, he noticed she rarely came out of her room anymore except for chores and cooking, and even then she seemed depressed.

"She's...thinking lately. About what though, I don't know." Dante said hesitantly.

"Ok." Musubi accepted easily. Dante felt guilty but it was for the best.

Dante pulled out his phone checked the time and saw it was 1:00 P.M., leaving 23 hours before the meeting tomorrow, and he had things to do.

"Ok, guys, if you need me I'll be making lunch inside. I'll let you know when it's time to eat." Dante said as he headed inside, moving towards the door.

"Thanks Dante." Jenny said as he walked in, closing the door behind him and leaving them on the porch. Jenny then turned to Tobias and grinned. "Up for another spar?"

"You're on, and this time I'm winning damn it!" Tobias said competitively as both of them moved to the center of the yard.

Dante walked down the hall thinking about the plan he had made with the others earlier. It was nearly perfect, but there was a glaring problem to, one he had a solution for. Just one they might not like.

He ws so deep in though it wasn't until he was standing in the doorway to the kitchen that he heard chopping and happened to look up. His stomach dropped.

Miya was chopping some vegetables while on the stove was a wok for stir fry, heating oil in the bottom. She looked to see Dante standing in the doorway, which caused her to stop chopping.

"Dante." Miya said in a false cheerful voice.

"Hi Miya." Dante said, rubbing his head, feeling awkward. "I was just going to make lunch. Do you want some help?"

"No thank you." Miya said, smiling but her eyes lacked the twinkle they used to have. Plus the corners of her eyes didn't crinkle like they did when people genuinely smiled. "I'm fine."

Dante didn't push it and turned to leave before stopping, and turning again.

"Miya, are you sure you're fine?"

"Yes." Miya said, but she didn't look at him as she kept chopping.

"Everyone's worried about you Miya, I am too. Are you absolutely sure you're fine?" Dante asked.

"Yes." Miya said levely, but she punctured her response by slamming the last chop down so the knife was embedded half an inch in the wood. Dante decided for his health he wouldn't push anymore. He turned and left, not noticing how Miya looked after him, looking extremely sad and guilty. As Dante closed the door behind him, he walked down the hall while making a call. The phone rung for a few seconds as he went up the stairs until it clicked and he heard a gruff, male voice say, "Hello?"

"Hey, Seo, it's Dante."

"Dante?" Seo sounded surprised before demanding, "How did you get my number?"

"Not important. I need a favor."

_Later that night at dinner_

"I can't believe you did this behind our backs!" Kagari shouted over the dinner table.

"Kagari, inside voice." Miya said from her spot at the head.

"I have no idea to what you're referring." Dante replied calmly as he ate the fish dinner Miya had prepared.

"I'm talking about you bringing in somebody after we already made a plan, especially...him!"

"Hey! I have a name!" Seo objected from his spot.

It was around 8 at night and everyone was trying to eat peacefully, but it was somewhat difficult due to the fact that Kagari insisted on arguing with Dante about how he had brought in three new people.

Seo had arrived several hours earlier at the house to the shock of most people, Kagari being more so, the shock increased when he had showed up with his Sekirei. The greetings had been shouts, shock, and general explanations on Dante's side. They were now sitting at the table, Miya at the head, Dante sitting on the right side with Musubi and Matsu sitting on his immediate right, while Akitsu and Ku sit on the other. Jenny was sitting across with Kagari, as well as Seo and his twin Sekirei, who were still in bondage gear. Uzume sat at the end, while Tobias and Kazehana had decided to skip dinner due to their guests, but were still in the room around the edges, watching the precedings.

"You want this guy and his Sekrei to watch you two while you meet with one of the most dangerous men in the city and the game! Not to mention you want us to trust them!" Kagari shouted over the table.

"Hey!" One of the twins protested. "We're trust worthy!"

"You two hunted down Unwinged Sekirei, which I might add I told you to stop doing. Tell me how that is trustworthy." Tobias spoke up, arms crossed and eyes narrowed.

"Why should we?" Hibiki snorted. "It weeds out the competition and..."

Tobias flicked his fingers and the twins felt like they had been hit by something in the forehead.

"Hey!" Both twins shot up, looking ready to fight before they were pounded with killer intent. Hikari and Hibiki both froze and looked at the source.

"You know I don't tolerate violence in Izumo Inn." Miya said sweetly as her mask came from the darkness behind her.

Everyone who lived in the inn frowned worriedly. Miya's killing intent wasn't nearly as dense as it normally was, but it was dense enough to make both twins instantly bow and beg forgiveness, chanting 'We're sorry,' over and over. Miya smiled before releasing the mask.

Seo frowned as he looked at his 'friend,' concern planted on his face.

"Miya, are you all right, you seem a little...off."

The lavandernette smiled. "I'm fine Seo, but thank you for the concern."

Seo's frown said he clearly didn't believe her but he let the matter drop as he turned to Dante.

"So, you want me and my girls' help to rescue Uzume's Ashikabi. Why?"

Dante put down his chop sticks and leaned forwards. "Because, as it is we're stretched a bit thin. Uzume and Kazehana would be going for Chiho, Kagari, Musubi and Akitsu would be fighting any Sekirei Higa would have guarding the back door of the hospital, while me and Tobias talk to Higa in the front. Matsu would be here directing everything, but it still means me and Tobias would have no readily available back up."

"If I agreed to this, what would be in it for us?" Seo asked, leaning back.

"How does 10,000 yen sound? It's not even that hard a job. You and the twins would just watch, and if we needed an exit, rain down lightning on Higa's Sekirei."

Seo looked thoughtful for a minute before he said, "We'll do it. For 20,000."

"12,000." Dante offered.

"20,000, or we don't help."

"You can't really afford not to." Dante said as he pulled out his phone, navigating the screens before rattling off, "Since you recently lost almost all you're money buying alcohol, porn magazines, and a certain body enhancer from Sweeden that I will not be naming as it would offend most everyone in this room."

The room temperature dropped thirty degrees as the twins both turned to Seo, sparks litterly jumping from their eyes.

"Seooooooooo..." They growled. "You spent all our money again!?"

"I suggest running." Dante wisely told Seo, which he took the advice. He bolted out of the room shouting for mercy as the twins chased him out screaming bloody murder as they shot lighting bolts after him

"You're evil, you know that right?" Tobias asked.

"Thank you." Dante said happily as he pocketed his phone. God, he loved the Internet.

_1.21 gigawats of electricity and an hour's worth of screaming later_

"Fine, we'll help." A slightly blackened and smoking Seo unhappily to Tobias and Dante as he stood in the entrance of Izumo Inn, with the twins looking pissed off despite venting their frustration on their Ashikabi.

"Good doing business with you." Dante said cheerfully. "Meet us here at 7 in the morning and we'll bring you up to speed on where exactly you'll be."

The man grunted before turning on heel and walking away.

"And you two, stop hunting Unwinged Sekirei or I won't hesitate to blast you to the other side of the Pacific Ocean." Tobias snarled at the twins. They both glared back before turning and following their Ashikabi without responding.

After they were gone and the two teens were left alone, Tobias said, "You know Miya's taking what she did hard."

Dante nodded, looking out the door. "I know."

"You need to lighten up on her."

"I'm not even being hard about, hell I'm not even bringing it up." Dante sighed.

"And that's the problem." Tobias closed the door. "Miya thinks you're purposely not talking about it because you're not forgiving her."

What the two teens didn't know was Miya was standing around the corner listening in quitely. She hadn't meant to, she had been heading back to her room but when she had heard them talking about her she couldn't help listening in.

"I am." Dante said unconvincingly.

"Dante, I get it. I do. She invaded you're privacy at a huge moment and everyone almost found out your secret. But for gods sakes, Miya is sorry. More then that, she's guilty, hell, she's miserable. You need to let her know she's forgiven." Tobias said firmly, looking at his friend.

Miya felt her heart lift slightly at hearing the tenant defending her. And he was right, guilt had been eating her alive ever since Dante had talked with her two days ago, sapping her happiness and leaving her drained to do anything besides the normal work.

Dante sighed and rubbed his brow. Tobias was right. Miya was punishing herself because she thought he was punishing her. She had suffered enough.

"All right, before we go save Chiho tomorrow, I'll go and tell Miya she's forgiven. But it's late in the meantime. Let's head to bed." Dante started walking down the hall before he felt himself run into something.

"No, now." Tobias's tone was unyielding.

"What?" Dante said stupidly as he turned.

"You are not delaying this until tomorrow damn it, she's suffered enough. Now go find her, talk to her, and bury the hatchet already."

Dante sighed again. "Fine. I'll do it tonight. Can you take down the air wall?"

Miya quickly moved down the hall to her room. She didn't want to be caught if Dante was ready to forgive her.

_10 minutes later_

Dante stood outside Miya's room and knocked on the door. He waited nervously as he heard her moving towards the door before it opened to show a depressed looking Miya.

"Miya. Can I come in please?" Dante asked respectfully. She silently moved aside so Dante could walk in. The room was the same as last time but it had a distinctly depressing feel to it now.

He turned as Miya closed the door behind him and noted she was wearing her normal kimono, her hands clasped together in front of her, and she was standing there with a straight posture. To most people, no one would be able to tell that something was wrong with her.

Dante was not most people. He could see the signs of nervousness on her as clear as day, the slight worrying of her lower lip before she had laid eyes on him, the way her thumbs twitched as if wanting to rub the backs of her hands, her posture was straighter than usual and stiff, very stiff as if she had been standing there for a while now. All were signs of someone who was nervous, they were just less noticeable on her than they would be on anyone else. Miya's acting skills were easily on par with a world class actor.

Dante tried to think of how to do this before he finally just decided to get it over with. So with thought, Dante placed both arms to his side before bowing deeply at the waist, going down until he was looking at the floor at a 90 degree angle.

"Miya, I'm sorry for what I said before and the pain I've caused you by how I've been acting. I realize my actions were infuriating even to someone such as yourself, and that I overreacted, causing you to feel more guilty then the occasion warranted. And for that I offer my humblest apologies."

Dante held the pose for a few minutes before Miya's soft voice said, "Please raise your head Dante."

He looked up and saw Miya had regret in her eyes.

"Your reaction was warranted. You asked for privacy and I denied it to you when you respected mine. I over stepped my bounds."

Dante straightened now and said, "Maybe we both over reacted. But Miya, I am sorry. My past is a long and dangerous one I couldn't risk anyone finding out about."

Miya nodded. "I understand, and I will not make the same mistake again."

Dante did not knowing why he did, he just felt the urge and acted on it.

He quickly moved forwards and hugged Miya. He felt Miya stiffen with shock before relaxing and hesitantly putting her arms around Dante and returning the hug. After a few seconds, Dante pulled away, though he thought Miya only let him go reluctantly. They looked at each other before Dante said, "Forgiven?"

Miya thought for a minute, looking up at the ceiling before smiling and nodding.

"Forgiven. Good luck tomorrow Dante. You will need it."

Dante nodded. "I know. Good night Miya."

Dante left the room, leaving Miya with a smile on her face and an odd feeling of warmth through her body.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

The morning was normal enough to start with. Dante and Tobias woke up with their Sekirei, though Tobias was still not used to the fact Kazehana insisted on sleeping with him nearly or completely naked. They had gone to breakfast and eaten, but the tension in the air had been so thick even Musubi had been subdued while Uzume looked down right nervous. There had also be a minor incident when Tobias had reached for his drink and inadvertently caused it to go flying and smash against the wall. He had apologized and explained since his powers were linked to his mind, they were also linked to his emotions.

"So whenever I get nervous or mad my powers tend to go a little berserk." He said.

"What happens if you get furious?" Dante asked, curious. Tobias's responded flatly and with dead eyes.

"A natural disaster."

They had finished up breakfast just in time for the door to knock. Dante had opened it to show Seo and the twins, Seo looking 'cheerful' while the twins looked irritated.

"Just in time." Dante stepped aside to let the three of them in.

"I am nothing if not punctual." Seo said with a mock bow.

Dante had something he could've said, but decided against it. "Come on, I'll bring you guys up to speed on the plan. We've only got a few hours before the meeting."

After settling in Matsu's room with everyone, Dante took over the computer banks, but this time he stuck with the regular screens instead of his hologram system.

"Ok, here's the plan. Tobias and I wil be meeting with Higa in front of the hospital alone. While were talking to him and keeping him distracted, Kagari, Akitsu, and Musubi, you'll be fighting any Sekirei he'll have set up in the back of the hospital, here." Dante pulled up a 3-D map of the hospital and highlighted the two points

"It's Homura." The fire using Sekrei said irritated.

"I'm sticking with Kagari, get used to it." Dante replied, making Kagari grumble before letting Dante go on.

"Now, Higa has cleared out the hospital of everyone besides essential staff, security, and Chiho. As the Sekrei at the back are being kept busy, Kazehana, Jenny, and Uzume, you'll be getting to Chiho's room."

"What do we do if we run into security?" Kazehana asked, looking over the plan with interest, as well as Matsu.

"I've got it covered." Jenny spoke up. She pulled out a cylinder and popped off the top to show...

"How is lipstick going to help?" One of the twins asked irritated while Dante face palmed.

"Tell me that isn't what I think it is."

"Depends on what you think it is." Jenny teased with a smile.

"Hallucinogenic lipstick from River."

"Laced with that fear toxin you got from that one universe." She added while putting the lipstick back in her pocket.

"Beautiful." The timelord muttered. "Fine, use that, but only if you have to."

"K."

"Now, once you guys get to Chiho's room, Kazehana will come in. You have a flight ability right?"

Kazehana hesitated. "I do, but I'm not use to lifting 3 other people besides me."

"That's fine, you just need to get them to the ground floor and soften the landing. Once you do, the three of you go to this spot." Dante zoomed out on the map and highlighted a spot three blocks away from the hospital. "We'll be there as soon as we can. The three of you, head there after your fights are finished." He adressed the three Sekirei he had assigned to the back, who all nodded.

"What about me and my girls?' Seo asked, arms crossed and looking bored.

"You three set up base right here." He highlighted a spot on the map. "You'll be able to see everything that happens with some binoculars, be far enough away to not be seen, yet close enough to fire with accuracy."

Tobias spoke up. "We're going to need to keep in contact during this."

"Way ahead of you." Dante pulled out a small case from his hoodie pockets and opened it to show small earpieces, passing them around.

"These are modified bone conductor earpieces. They work off the vibration in your jaw to transmit what you say and can receive from others."

He then handed something that looked like some sort of control panel the size of a cell phone to Matsu. "Matsu, you'll be in charge of communications and directing us from here in case anything goes wrong."

Matsu nodded. "Matsu can hack into any cameras and satilies to see what's happening in real time."

"Perfect. Once Chiho is safe, everyone go to the meeting point. Any objections?" No one spoke so the hybrid nodded. "Good. Tobias, come with me. We need to get ready for the meeting in..." He checked his watch. "1 hour and 37 minutes."

The teen nodded and gve Kazehana a quick kiss before standing."Let's go then."

"Where are you going?" Musubi asked brightly as the teens headed to the door. They both stopped, looked at each other, then Musubi.

"It's a secret." Dante smirked, making Musubi pout. He laughed at the adorable sight and said, "Don't worry, we'll be at the meeting in time. Call us if you need anything."

They left the inn and walked for several blocks before Dante pulled Tobias into a side alley.

"What's here?" Tobias asked while Dante tapped the Ultramatrix.

"Nothing, this is just the closest place without any cameras watching us. Here we go." He finished messing with his watch and the groaning, wheezing sound of the TARDIS filled the air as it flicked.

"Let's shake things up Higa." Dante said evilly as he pulled open the door and led the way in.

_1 hour and 40 minutes later_

"Where are they?" Jenny growled out angrily as she checked her watch before looking back through her binoculars. She was looking at the hospital through them, shining in the sunlight brightly.

Kazehana and Uzume were next to her, Kazehana wearing her normal dress, but Uzume was in a new outfit. A set of twin sheets that concealed her breasts and wrapped around her neck and ribcage, another sheet forming a strange sarong/loincloth garment on her lower body. Around her, bolts of white drifted and fluttered around her in such a way that they looked like they were alive. Another veil was resting on her head, pulled low enough to serve as a cowl which concealed most of her face. The look on her face told Jenny that she was thinking of nothing else but getting her Ashikabi out of that hospital as soon as possible.

Everyone else was in position as Dante had asked, hidden and ready, but Dante and Tobias were currently AWOL.

"Where's who?" Dante's voice said in her head. Jenny jumped and touched her ear.

"Dante, is that you?"

"Yep, miss us?" He said with a clear smile on his voice.

"Where are you two, Higa is already here." She heard Kazehana say through her own ear piece.

Jenny looked through her binoculars again, looking at the entrance where Higa was standing patiently.

Pretty boy. That was the first thing that came to Jenny's mind when she saw Higa Izumi in person. Dressed in an elaborate pure white business suit that looked to be more expensive than the average citizen made in a year, maybe even two, with a white shirt underneath his business suit and a black tie gave the young man an air of refinement. He was fairly skinny, yet from the way he held himself, it was obvious to her he kept himself in shape. His light brown hair was cut in the slightly messy yet refined look that most stereotypical bishounen had these days, similar yet slightly different from Kagari's hair style. The bangs of his hair hid light gray eyes that held a sharpness to them if one looked hard enough. Cold, calculating, they were the eyes of someone who not only held a fierce intellect but a lack of morals. Jenny instantly determined right then and there that this man would be one of the most dangerous to cross.

"Almost there, another 30 seconds or so." Tobias's voice joined in. "Is everyone in place?"

"Waiting to start." Seo joined in. "And about time, my girls are getting impatient."

"Pulling up now. Matsu, start the operation." Dante spoke up.

"Roger." Matsu said in confirmation. Uzume tensed and Jenny couldn't help smiling.

She loved this life.

_At the entrance of the hospital_

Higa stood patiently waiting for the two people he had contacted only a week earlier. They were late, but not terribly so. He wasn't upset.

He then heard two engines and two cars came speeding into view.  
The first one that came into view was a grey DeLorean DMC-12, which lisence plate said **OUTATIME**.

The second one was a dark black 1972 Dodge Challenger which engine revved loudly as it's lisence plate said **F&F**.

Both cars pulled up to the curb and rumbled to a stop before silencing. Dante got out of the DeLorean while Tobias got out of the Challanger, both slamming the doors behind them. Both then turned and started walking towards Higa, who also started walking.

Dante was wearing a pair of odd shades over his eyes that were silver and almost looked solid, leaving most people to wonder if he could look out from them. His outfit was consisted of a black jumper, a red t-shirt and black jeans with black Converse. Tobias was now wearing a black shirt that spelled out the words 'F $! Off' in red, black jeans held up with a thick belt and black tennis shoes. Higa also noted some sort of blur on his hip, but ignored it.

Both teens stopped a meter from Higa and he did as well.

_From Dante and Tobias point of view_

"Higa Izumi I presume?" Dante said cheerfully, nodding at Higa.

The white suited business man smiled and nodded. "Inded. And you must be Dante Price and Tobias. I've wanted to meet you for a while now."

"Can we ask why?" Tobias asked in a civilized voice, though his hand was flexing. He was making a effort not to grab his sword, which was resting on his hip in its sheath right now. The reason Higa didn't notice it was because Dante had put a perception filter on it for the time being to hide it from view.

"Well, it's hard not to be interested in such individuals such as yourselves." Higa smiled condensingly. "The Mircale Worker who winged a scrapped number, and the Airbender, a man with power over air. Anyone would be curious." He reasoned.

"There are two Sekirei in the tree line to your rights." Seo reported, but Dante and Tobias didn't react as Dante kept talking.

Dante pushed up his shades to show his eyes. "You flatter us. But I must say if that was the only reason we were here, you wouldn't have bothered to have summoned us."

"Quite right. I have a proposal for you two."

_With Kagari and his group_

Kagari was pacing anxiously waiting for the mission to start. He was dressed up in his defender of Unwinged Sekirei outfit, his mask pulled over his lower half of his face.

He hadn't felt this nervous in a long time, not since the war on the island. This wasn't nearly as dangerous, but it was nerve racking nonetheless.

Musubi on the other hand was relaxed. In fact, she was excited.

"I hope I get to fight a strong oppentent!" She said happily, bouncing on her feet. "I want a really good fight and to put the training I got from landlady to use!"

Akitsu was calm as always, simply waiting until they were told to start.

"Mission is a go. Proceed with distraction." Matsu's voice said professionally in his ear piece.

"Roger." Kagari responded, touching his ear. "Jenny, wait 5 minutes before heading in so we can draw them away."

"Understood. Go nuts Kagari." His Ashikabi's cheerful voice responded.

The group launched themselves from the tree line, running down the hill towards the hospital. When they reached the bottom, they all leaped again, landing in the parking lot and running towards the doors. War was about to be unleashed.

"Oi! Who the hell are you three?" The sound of impatient shouting greeted them as Kagari took a look at their opponents.

The girl before him had short blond hair and light grayish blue eyes set on a face that seemed to have perfected the art of looking impatience and petulant. Her clothing consisted of a black leather tube top with lighter gray stripes that showed off her belly button. Two leather bands around her clavicle just before reaching the shoulder and under her armpits, and leather armbands of the same make went from the middle of her bicep all the way to her hands and ended there to meet a set of black leather gloves. Following the consistency of her outfit, she was also wearing a pair of black leather bloomers with a belt attached to it, stockings that followed the same pattern as everything else, and a black choker around her neck. It was a very indecent outfit bordering on lewd, not that Kagari paid as much attention to that other than noting it with distaste.

What really got his attention, however, were the long strings with blades attached to her hand. She had three in each hand sticking in between her fingers, eight in all. They were an unusual weapon, very much unlike the swords, whips, katanas, nagitanas, and other more standard forms of weaponry that most of the weapon-type Sekirei tended to use. They looked quite deadly.

While he observed the six blades on the short haired Sekireis person with the sort of nonchalance he was known for, Musubi was watching the blade user with an expression that was almost like a child at the candy store.

"She looks so strong!" Musubi said in a breathless fashion. She turned to Homura as he gave her a strange look. "Can I fight her? Please! Please!" She begged, and it seemed to him that the busty Sekirei wearing shrine maiden clothes had completely forgotten about the reason they had come here in the first place now that she was faced with someone to fight. Akitsu had stopped a few yards back, apparently ready to support them from a distance.

"No," Kagari said, his eye twitching at the girl. "This one is mine. You and Akitsu can take on the other one." He indicated the other Sekirei that was with the bladed one. She was another short girl, but with a vastly different personality it seemed. Where the other one was projecting an air of anger and impatience, this girl looked like she might run at the slightest sign of violence. She was wearing a modified form of shrine maiden clothes similar to those of Musubi's yet different. Her sleeves had two slits in them near the shoulder, the smaller one on top being smaller than the one below it. Red stitching was attached just below the second slit, and the sleeves themselves were very wide. The obi was dark pink with a whie bow attached to it, and the skirt below that was a lighter pink. Her outfit was finished with a pair of white stockings and boots.

"OK!"

Kagari eyes widened in shock when Musubi spun on a dime and shot off like a bullet from a gun, charging straight towards the frightened looking Sekirei. "My name's number eighty eight, Musubi! I'm a fist-type!"

"No wait! Musubi!" Kagari shouted, his hand outstretched towards the fist fighter as if he could reach out and stop her. Not that he was close enough to reach her, and at the speeds she was moving he wouldn't reach her before she reached her opponent. "Dammit! We were supposed to lead them away!"

Seriously, what the hell was wrong with that girl?

"OI!" The short Sekirei shouted again, her impatience seeming to reach it's peek as she tossed one of her blades at him. "Don't ignore me you bastard!"

The blade came in fast and hot, shooting at Kagari with speeds that a human would never be able to catch. Kagari was a Sekirei, however, and while not as physically powerful as the fist and weapon-type's, was more than capable of keeping pace with the projectile. Being a single digit also helped.

He dodged the blade easily enough, jumping to the side and letting the sharp implement attached to a string sail past him. The Sekirei who had thrown the weapon 'tched' and yanked on the string attached to the blade she had thrown, causing it to get pulled back towards her where she caught it in between her fingers once again.

"Now answer me!" she shouted, something she seemed to do a lot. Maybe angry was just her natural state of being. "Who the hell are you people?!" With the mission to lead their opponents away from the hospital pretty much destroyed thanks to the excitable fist fighter, Kagari responded to the Sekirei facing by causing a large ball of fire to appear above his left hand. Without preamble he threw the white hot sphere of flame at the blade user, eliciting a squawk from the short haired Sekirei as she made to dodge it.

"You want to know who I am?" asked Kagari as he conjured another ball of flame. "Very well, I'm number zero six, Kagari. And I'll be your opponent this evening."

"Shit, a single digit!" The blade tossing Sekirei cursed as she seemed to realize just how much trouble she was really in now. The single digits were feared for a reason, it was said that any Sekirei with a single digit was just as strong unwinged as normal Sekirei was when they were winged. And since her Ashikabi wasn't here, it wouldn't matter if she was unwinged or not because she couldn't use her Norito. Still, as she readied her blades again it was clear she wasn't going to give up. "Damn, I never expected to fight against a single digit. But that doesn't mean I'm going to let you get away with coming here and ignoring me like that! I'm number thirty one, Sai!"

While Kagari prepared for his battle with the now known Sai, Musubi had already made first contact with her own opponent. In a show of just how much stronger she had gotten since first meeting Miya, the fist-types left fist came in fast and hard, a speeding blur that was much more fluid than it used to be before she and her Ashikabi started living at Izumo Inn. Her attack was so fast that the Sekirei she had attacked barely had enough time to jump back and get out of the way. There was an audible 'woosh!' noise as Musubi's fist displaced the air in front of her, the attacking missing her target who began a tactical retreat. This did not deter the excited woman one bit, and with dogged determination and a joy that most people would probably consider creepy considering she was in battle, Musubi began speeding after the other Sekirei.

"Musubi, that's not leading them away!" Jenny's voice said in his ear. "Musubi, stop it!"

"It's no good, she's gone!" Kagari replied as he watched the fight while carrying on his own.

It he become a game of cat and mouse as Musubi launched attack after attack with her fists an impossible blur. There was a large smile on her face that belied the fierceness of her attacks, it was quite clear that the fist-type Sekirei was greatly enjoying her second taste of combat. Her opponent on the other hand did not seem to be enjoying the thrill of battle, instead looking like frightened prey in the face of a predator. It was a terrible analogy when considering the fact that Musubi looked about as threatening as a rabbit, but there you go.

In spite of her apparent fright for Musubi, or perhaps for combat in general, the timid looking Sekirei did her best to dodge the attacks as they came, moving backwards, to the left, to the right, ducking, but even though she managed to dodge all of the strikes directed at her it looked like it was only a matter of time before she was overwhelmed.

In an effort to gain some space from the battle crazy Sekirei, two blades shot out from her arms. They looked like a set of very large wrist blades, the blades themselves were in the shape of a curved triangle with a hollowed interior. They were attached to a circular projection that likely had some kind of mechanism on the inside to make them appear like that. Bringing out her left hand in a slashing motion, the blade made to carve a slice from Musubi's stomach. Thankfully the fist fighter gained more than just experience from Miya, she also gained excellent reflexes. The landlady was far faster than this girl after all. Musubi ducked under the swing, her hair – and her breasts – seemed to remaining in place at the quick move, and the blade that passed mere inches over her head sliced off a few strands of it before gravity came into play. By that time Musubi was already moving again, her opponent had decided not to fight gravity by trying to drag that blade she had just attacked with into a reverse swing, and instead was slashing at her with the sword in her right hand in a move that had her spinning a full three hundred and sixty degrees. The attack missed when Musubi jumped backwards, the tip of the blade missing by a good margin this time.

With her opponents swords now out, the battle began anew in a fast and furious pace. The girl she was facing was actually pretty good despite her timid demeanor, and Musubi seemed to be enjoying herself more and more. The fight had become less of a cat trying to catch a mouse and more of dance where the two would move around each other, striking with their respective attacks and dodging when needed. Musubi relied on the strength her training with Miya had given her to not only dodge the attacks sent her way, but also redirect them with simple jabs and taps to the flat end of her opponents swords. Aside from keeping the blades from cutting into her, the redirecting of the sword users weapons caused the two blades to move in wider arcs that not only took more energy, but more time to properly bring back into play. It was something Musubi had been working on, but had been unable to do on the landlady because she was far too fast. On this girl, however, the fist fighter found herself able to redirect the slashing strikes much more easily.

As time went on it was clear that her opponent was getting desperate. Her strikes became sloppier, her moves came in with less precision, and the look of wide eyed desperation on her face was very telling. It was as the battle looked like it was beginning to reach it's conclusion that the sword user, in her distress, came in with a piercing attack that was meant to stab Musubi in the chest.

With an incredible move dexterity and acrobatic skills, Musubi leapt up and over the blade, kicking her legs back to gain momentum and launch herself into a spin. When her body had reversed it's position with her head now pointing towards the ground, her right hand shot out and she tapped the flat top of the blade that had been set to slice into her, which had the effect of knocking the Sekirei using the weapon off balance. The blade was sent into the cement underneath their feet, gouging out a large chunk into the ground. Now behind the sword user, Musubi landed adroitly on her feet, grabbed the hem of her opponents shrine maiden outfit and yanked the entire top off.

"Kya!" Having her entire body now exposed to the elements, her opponents, and any potential perverts that might be watching caused the sword user to scream and quickly kneel down as she covered her chest with her arms in a failed attempt at protecting her modesty. This was a bad move to make on her account. Without her arms she was no longer able to attack her opponent with her swords, and Musubi seemed quite ready to put an end to the battle.

Pressing her index finger against her opponents Sekirei crest, Musubi began to recite her Norito. "By the fists of my contact, my Ashikabi's perils will be shattered!" Light began gathering at the tip of her fingers, energy gathered around the Sekirei Crest. The symbol began to hiss and steam, and before long the Sekirei Crest, the symbol that showed everyone the Sekirei it marked has been winged by someone, disappeared. With the crest gone, the sword using Sekirei ceased functioning. Her body fell forward, hitting the ground with a dull thump.

It was over.

While Musubi had her battle with the unnamed Sekirei, Kagari was busy with his own confrontation. Sai was quite talented with those blades, tossing them at him one, two or even three at a time, then using the strings to swing them around and try to hit him from another angle. Constantly he was being forced to dodge attack after attack as the Sekirei he faced off against continuously brought her weapons into play, and whenever he knocked one off course, she would simply make that one return to her and launch another of her blades which she always kept in the wing.

This normally would not be much of a problem. As a being of fire, Kagari's ability to bring intense flames into combat was usually enough to burn through just about anything if he so desired it. He had proven this just a few days ago when he had helped a young unwinged Sekirei with silver hair not unlike his own escape from Mikogami's bloodhounds. The blond whip user, he never got her name, had tried to restrain him and take him to her master as a consolation prize. That idea had lasted only long enough for him to burn her whip straight through and send her packing with a few well placed fireballs. So yeah, his flames were pretty damn hot and could melt or burn just about anything, including metal.

The problem was that he couldn't get a proper bead on the weapons being tossed at him. It was partly due to the fact that this girl was much more skilled with her weapon than that other one was, and partially because there was more than one being aimed his way. The blades themselves were constantly moving, slicing at him from behind, to his sides, from above, always coming in at the same time and from different angles. Number thirty was very good at multidimensional attacks it seemed. All the power in the world sometimes couldn't compete with numbers.

Another issue that compounded onto this battle was the fact that they were fighting in front of a hospital. In any other circumstance, Kagari would have just turned up the heat and encased himself in a flame so hot that the throwing weapons being directed at him melted long before they reached him. However, since they were so close to a hospital, and in a damn parking lot with lots of cars that had gasoline in them to boot, he couldn't simply cut lose lest he wanted to risk blowing the entire parking lot to kingdom come.  
And this is why Kagari was beginning to regret Dante making him bring Musubi along. Maybe he should have sent her towards the other Sekirei and stuck with Akitsu instead.

"Akitsu, make some ice and slow down that Sekirei!" He heard Jenny shout in her ear peice, sounding slightly winded for some reason.

Kagari leaped back as he felt the air around him grow cold and not a moment too soon. The ground underneath him and Sai turned to ice in an instant, making the female Sekirei slip and fall.

"Hey!" She cried in protest as she tried to get up, but kept slipping.

"Incoming!"

Kagari turned to see Jenny and the others running towards them.

"Jenny, get Chiho, we'll deal with her!" Kagari shouted as he Sekirei ran towards them

"Thanks, but I got it!" Jenny called as she ran passed and jumped onto the ice, sliding easily across it.

"Jenny, wait!" Uzume cried as the blond slid towards Sai, who was shakingly standing up on the smooth and slippery surface. She looked up to see Jenny.

She threw one of her blades at the blonde, but she simply ducked underneath as it flew over her head, slicing off a few hairs as it did. When Jenny was close enough, she spun and kicked the Sekirei's legs out from under her, hitting the ground hard.

Jenny then did something completely unexpected by anyone.

She then grabbed Sai by the front of her shirt and kissed her.

Everyone just stopped and looked as Jenny pulled back and dropped Sai, who looked just as confused as everyone else.

"Jenny, why did you just...do that?" Kazehana asked in a confused tone.

Jenny pulled out the lipstick from earlier and held it up.

"Not my best idea, but this will take her out of commission." Jenny explained.

Sai suddenly had a glazed look on her face as Jenny went on.

"It's hallucinating lipstick with just a hint of something Dante gave me."

Sai was curling in on herself and holding her head, starting to scream.

"What's happening?" Kagari asked, moving towards Sai and kneeling down as Akitsu melted the ice under them.

"That little extra kick Dante gave me was..."

"No! Get away from me! I hate clowns! Get away!" Sai screamed in panic.

"...a small dosage of fear toxin." Jenny smirked. "Kagari, put her out of her misery."

The fire user nodded and touched two fingers to Sai's Sekrei crest before reciting, "These are the flames of my pledge, burn the karma of my Ashikabi."

The girls crest glowed and dissolved, silencing the girl as she relaxed, going limp.

Jenny knelt next to the girl and gently closed her eyes, slipping something into the pocket of the Sekirei's outfit without anyone noticing. She did the same with the other fallen Sekirei that Musubi beat.

She then stood up. "Come on, we need to get Chiho now. Kagari, Musubi, and Akitsu, head to the meeting place. Kazehana and Uzume, come on."

The group split up, the three females heading into the hospital while the other three left the battle.

_Back in front of the hospital_

"So you want us to join forces with you, and help you oust MBI and demolish the Sekirei Plan," Dante concluded at the end of Higa's speech. The two teens had listened to the man all the way through as he listed his 'grievances' about MBI; stating how evil they were for bringing two people together and ripping them apart so cruelly, how Minaka was a madman that found amusement in the suffering of others and had to be stopped, and how he, Higa Izumi could do that if he had their help. It was a rousing speech, almost passionate in the way he declared his desire to defeat the heartless conglomerate known as MBI. Dante had to give the man credit, not only had he made a bold and upfront proclamation, he had done so in a way that would make most people jump at the chance he was offering.

Tobias and Dante hadn't heard anything of the battle where they were, but they heard over their earpieces everyone was fine while Higa talked to them, making his speech.

"That's right," Higa said with a nod and a smile that was probably designed to be friendly, but to someone like Dante was as transparent as a perception filter. He could easily spot the cold glint in Higa's eyes when the man spoke. "That's right, as someone who has winged so many Sekirei, surely you can understand why I am doing this. Minaka Hiroto is a madman who needs to be stopped in order for Ashikabis and their Sekirei to live peaceful lives together. With you helping me, I am sure we can accomplish this goal."

"And what happens after that?" asked Tobias. "When MBI is defeated what happens then? Will you take over MBI? Steal their technology in order to elevate your own pharmaceutical company to the status it used to be before Minaka created MBI? And what will happen to the Sekirei without the company to regulate them and keep the world from knowing about their existence?"

There was a reason Dante hadn't tried killing Minaka yet, aside from the fact that he didn't want to tussle with the Discipline Squad. At least not yet. If the President of MBI was killed, and the large company really did fall, it would create chaos. The Ashikabi and Sekirei, freed from the need to keep their existence a secret by MBI's rules, would be free to reveal themselves without fear of reprisals from MBI. This in turn would lead to the average citizens finding out about Sekirei, which in turn would lead to all the governments around the world finding out about Sekirei, and that in turn would lead to a mass of military units being sent here by various governments to try and capture a Sekirei for themselves. It would cause chaos and war on a global scale.

"You need not worry about what happens after MBI has been defeated," Higa said in a tone that sounded like a mixture between placating and condescending. "Once I have taken control of Shinto Teito, I will make sure everything is taken care of." Both teens frowned deeply upon hearing those words, there was something about the way Higa worded that sentence that just screamed 'hidden intentions'. It had been clear from the start of their conversation that the man was not as altruistic as he was trying to come off as, and it was obvious that the man had plans for those who have become involved in the Sekirei Plan that was highly likely to be very unpleasant.

"Well, I have to say, you are the most..." Tobias started in a flattering tone, which made Higa's chest start puffing up. "...self serving, spineless, dickless bastard I have every had the misfortune of meeting."

"Ooohh, nice." Dante said, holding up a hand to high five Tobias, which he returned. He then turned to face Higa as he took of his shades and slipped them in his jacket pocket. "And I have to agree with my friend here, neither of us are going with you."

"I see," Higa sighed as he closed his eyes and looked down at the ground, as though hearing Dante's words caused him immense disappointment. "I'm sorry to hear that, because unfortunately, that means I am going to have to make you come with me by force."

That statement seemed to be some kind of signal, for the next thing they knew he was surrounded by two people, Sekirei from the looks of them, one behind him and one in front of him. The two Sekirei looked a little older than many of the other ones he had come across. They were taller than most and their figures were more mature. The one in front of him had long black hair that almost looked like it had a green tint to it and blue eyes. She had long black gloves that went all the way up her biceps and stopped just at the shoulders, and boots which were attached to leather straps that led to a belt placed high on her hips like some kind of dominatrix version of a garter belt. Beneath that she had on a mostly blue outfit that was very similar to the many pinup girls he had scene posing on front of magazine covers for cars and motorcycles. The outfit itself had two parts to it, a set of short shorts, and a cleavage baring top that had a white stripe on the very top of it where a Sekirei crest was being displayed on the right hand side, a large gap in the middle to show off the swell of her breasts, and no coverage on the bottom, allowing for her well defined stomach muscles to show. The last thing that caught Dante's eye about her ensemble was the long red lance she was wielding.

A quick glance behind him revealed the second of their ambushers. That particular femme was decked out in some kind of purple, yellow, and black outfit that wrapped around and was being held together at the top of her abdominal muscles by a metal ring. Portions of her midriff, her sides, her arms, even the outer portions of her thighs were exposed, while the rest was checkered back and forth with purple and yellow. She had long black thigh high boots and short black gloves to finish it. She was also the first Sekirei he had seen with hair that looked like it would be more suited on a male, something not even Kagari could lay claim to. It was short, less than an inch long, and framing her skull closely.

Both of them were eying him with a look of bloodlust, and from the way they held themselves, Dante knew that these two were not like Yomi. When he had faced number forty three, he had come to the realization that the Sekirei MBI had unleashed were not warriors. They had powers that could be comparable to the fighters in his day, but they had not been formally trained combat. These two, however, were definitely fighters, skilled ones too if their bodies were anything to go by. Both were very muscular, a fact which did not detract from their features at all, their bodies were toned in such a way that told Dante all he needed to know about them as far as combat went. It was quite clear that while most Sekirei were not truly fighters, these two had trained themselves rigorously for combat.

"I would like to ask you again," Higa stated, an almost pleasant smile still on his face. "Please agree to ally yourself with me. It would be a shame if these two were forced to apprehend you and accidentally killed you."

Dante then chuckled while scratching the back of his head, Tobias laughing along side him. "Oh you have no idea how many times I've heard those words and been in this exact situation."

"Same here. You think you can take us in?" Tobias asked with a condescending smile on his face.

The barehanded of the Sekirei snorted. "Please. You two are unarmed and human, even if you do have freaky air powers. We won't break a sweat."

Dante sighed and asked, "Which one do you want?"

Tobias looked between the two before resting a hand on his swords hilt. "The one with the lance is mine."

"Aw really? I wanted to take her. Besides last time I faced a weapon weilder it was way too easy."

"Sorry, but this one is my fight."

The hybrid sighed. "Alright she's yours. But first," He then rolled up his sleeve revealing the Ultramatix. "...let me send our rides back. It took me forever to make the changes I wanted."

Dante pushed the dial on the Ultramatrix and both cars rumbled to a start, making everyone look towards them as they both screeched off and drove away. With a smile, Dante popped up the dial. "There we go, both are on the way back, so now..."

"Let's get this party started." Tobias drew his sword, showing the blade for the first time. It was average length and width, but the blade was bright green and glowing slightly as the wind picked up.

Dante slammed the dial down and after the flash, flexed both wrists. There was a sharp **_SNIKT_** and two blades shot from his wrists, thin and silver.

Both Sekirei grinned. "Well, things just go interesting. Let's dance."

Tobias charged his oppentent while Dante charged his, and the fight was on.  
Tobias slashed at the Sekirei but she blocked it with the hilt of her lance. Not missing a beat, Tobias aimed his blade and stabbed forwards, forcing the girl to jump back.

She spun her lance at Tobias like a club, but he flipped over stopping in mid air and looking down at her, upside down.

"Hello. How are you?" He asked cheerfully.

His response was a stab near the head. Tobias dropped down as it went past his ear, slightly nicking it. He hit the ground and held his palm out, a inch from the Sekirei's body.

"Divine push."

She went skidding back as a blast of air hit her in the side, sending back 20 feet. The girl smiled at him.

"Well, looks like you aren't just a weirdo with powers. This'll be fun."

Tobias held his sword ready as he asked, "You know my name, what's yours?"

Her grin turned savage. "Number 16 Toyotama."

"Well, nice to meet you. Sorry I have to beat the crap out of you."

She didn't get a chance to respond as Tobias took a deep breath before he said his attack.

"Divine roar of the wind god."

Tobias then roared, expelling a shockwave from his mouth combined with an all surroundings vibration that shook the earth. The shockwave collided with Toyotama and sent her soaring again, knocking her off her feet and back 40 feet, skidding on her back for another 20 before she stopped.

She grinned up at the sky. "Oh yeah, this'll be really fun."

_With Dante_

Dante stabbed forwards with his right hand, but his oppentent dodged with ease. He jabbed rapidly and at high speed, but she was dodging with ease and grace.

He slashed but his wrist was caught.

"Not bad, but you're too slow." The Sekirei smirked.

Dante smirked back. "Ah, but you haven't seen the quality of my foot work yet."

He grabbed her wrist with his other hand before jumping. He twisted and slammed his foot into her face, sending her back. She growled and started to get up, but Dante was already there.

"What the...?" She started saying before Dante kicked her again. This kick sent her up to chest height before Dante spun on heel again, slamming his other foot into her ribs. She was sent back again but this time landed on her feet, holding her ribs as she glared at Dante.

"I never caught your name." Dante asked as he put down his extended foot.

"Number 18 Ichiya."

"Dante Price," He smirked as he reached into his pockets. "The guy who's going to kick your ass."

He then pulled out two gauntlets and slipped them on. "Let's get started."

Ichiya snarled and charged. She threw a punch at Dante's ribs, but he blocked the attack, grabbing the fist with both hands. She threw a kick towards his exposed side, but Dante jumped over it, making her overextend herself. He let go of her fist with one hand, clenched it, and punched in the side, causing a crackle as Ichiya convulsed slightly.

"Electric gauntlets, very useful." He explained as he twisted and threw her. She maneuvered herself in midair and landed on her feet again, glaring.

Both fights proceeded with vigor while inside the hospital, the group was closing in on Chiho.

_Inside the hospital_

"How much further Matsu?" Jenny asked into her earpiece as they walked down the hall. They hadn't run into anyone else since they had entered the hospital besides some doctors who they had hide from until they went past.

"Turn right and then it's the fourth door on the left."

"Got it."

The group turned to see the room in question had two guards outside it, large, imposing, and stupid looking.

"I'll take care of the one on the right." Jenny said as they walked.

"Left is mine." Kazehana stated.

Both guards noticed them and moved from the door.

"Hey who the hell are you!? This floor is restricted to..." One guard started to shout before both Kazehana and Jenny ran towards them.

Jenny punched her guard in the ribs twice before kicking his legs out from under him. She silenced him with a kick to the jaw.

Kazehana took a slightly different approach. She rose her hand and fired a blast of air att he guard, knocking him out cold with the impact.

"Not bad." Jenny complimented before trying to door. It was locked.

"I got it." Uzume told them. One of the clothes rose up and waved for a second before compressing itself into something looking like a lock pick. It inserted itself, moved for a few seconds, then the lock clicked. Uzume didn't hesitate as she pushed open the door and went in, Jenny and Kazehana watching from the door way.

The room she was in was a small hospital room that remained consistent with the theme of the hospital, white walls, ceiling, and floors, a desk on the wall near the left with several cabinets containing medical equipment. There was a window on the opposite side of where the door was, and right next to the window was a twin sized bed.

And lying on that bed was none other than Uzume's Ashikabi, her peacefully sleeping face made Uzume's eyes soften, and a soft and beautiful smile form on her face. Moving lowly towards the bed, Uzume kept her eyes on the face of her Ashikabi. Despite looking so frail, she had never met someone as beautiful as her Chiho.

As she knelt by the bed, one of her hands reached out and began to gently caress Chiho's hair, however, before long her hand went from her Ashikabi's hair to caressing her face. Uzume let her thumb lightly trail over Chiho's left cheek and very lightly over her Ashikabi's lips, the action causing the young girl she had bound herself to, to stir.

Light brown eyes slowly opened, blinking several times before they locked onto Uzume's. For a moment, there was nothing but silence as the two stared at each other, their eyes reflecting their innermost feelings towards each other. Then Chiho smiled.

"Uzume." she whispered, her voice sounding weak, much weaker than it had when they had first met. It was almost heartbreaking, probably would be heartbreaking if not for the fact that Uzume had someone who could help them.

"Hey," Uzume said softly, her eyes gaining a warmth no one at Maison Izumo had ever seen. "How have you been? Feeling alright?"

"I'm better, now that you're here." Chiho said, her voice still laced with the last remaining bits of sleepiness. Uzume's cheeks gained a healthy yet almost unnoticeable shade of pink as she felt her heart speed up in an effort to supply more blood to her face. Her Ashikabi used that time to gain a more lasting hold on her consciousness, and smiled at the Sekirei she had bound herself to.

Jenny couldn't help smiling at the sight of the two people. Love was something pure, and he fact that Higa had taken advantage of this made it even more wrong.

"And how about you? It doesn't look like you've been crying again..." Chiho asked.

"Crying?" Uzume blinked, her expression morphing from one of peace to that of a deer caught in the headlights of a semi-truck. Her face gained a much more noticeable shade of red. She recovered admirably, an easy going grin on her face as she made to dismiss the girls concerns with a genuine, if slightly embarrassed laugh. "Haha! What are you talking? What makes you think I would be crying?"

"You don't have to pretend," Chiho told her, weakly raising one frail hand and clasping the one Uzume had been waving about in her attempt to deny the girl's accusation. Uzume froze, her heart began beating even more erratically in her chest as the girls weakened hand clenched hers in a surprisingly firm grip. She could have pulled away, of course, quite easily. Yet she did not. All she did was blush an even fiercer color of red. "I know," Chiho said, smiling at the busty tomboyish Sekirei. That smile. It both put Uzume at peace and caused her heart to race with the strength of a stampeding herd of elephants. "I know when Uzume is sad, because when she's sad I am sad. I know when Uzume is happy, because when she is happy I am happy. Even though you always look like you want to cry, you still smile for me. I know this because I am your Ashikabi."

"I..." Uzume gulped, her mind unable to think of what to say, and her mouth incapable of speech even if it was. Her heart was hammering in her chest, speeding faster than a bullet train, it felt like it would beat out of her heart at a seconds notice. She sniffed, once. Then brought an arm up to her face and began to scrub it surreptitiously. Her mind began to work once again, and a smile lit her face, as brilliant as the blush that had settled on her cheeks. "I love you too, Chiho." And she meant it. This girl, her Ashikabi, Uzume loved her more than life itself. That was what it meant for one to be bound as Ashikabi and Sekirei.

At least, that was one of the things it meant.

"He, he," Uzume leaned in closer, her grin suddenly turning mischievous and playful, eyes swimming with mirth. "Can I have a kiss?" she asked, puckering her lips as she continued to close the distance between her and her Ashikabi.

"U-Uzume!" Chiho gasped, this time it was her turn to blush. The girl buried her face beneath the covers up to her nose, her entire face a shade of red that matched a fire trucks, yet seemed to burn with the intensity of a star. Uzume thought it was adorable. "I-Is now really the best time?" At the word time, Uzume paused. Blinking a few times, her mind seemed to reboot from whatever fantasy world she had entered.

"I have to agree with her Uzume. We need to go." Jenny stated, looking down the hall to make sure the coast was still clear.

Chiho looked towards the door. She looked over the two woman before smiling gently. "Hello."

"Hello. I'm Jenny, this is Kazehana. Were friends of Uzume and here to get you out."

Chiho frowned, and gave Uzume a searching look. Uzume wasn't sure what the girl was looking for, but after a few seconds she seemed to find it, for she gave an understanding nod and said, "Ok."

"Ok?" Uzume blinked. "Just like that? You're not even going to ask me why we need to leave? Or where we're going to be taking you?" She had expected Chiho to at least ask where they were going, or maybe even ask for an explanation.

"You're my Sekirei," Chiho said with a shake of her head. "I trust Uzume, and if you're friends say that we need to leave, then I believe you." Uzume began to sniff as more dangerous moisture gathered at the corner of her eyes before she wiped it away. She wasn't crying, it was just that she had gotten dust in her eyes from the ventilation system.

"Thank you," Uzume said as she began to rise, her arms going out to her Ashikabi and pulling her up and into a hug. Her arms wrapped tightly around the frail body of the girl that winged her, and in return a pair of weakened arms went around her. Despite how thin Chiho's arms were, her grip was deceptively strong. Perhaps it was not only the Sekirei who gained strength from such a bond. "Thank you for being my Ashikabi."

"No," Chiho shook her head as a few small droplets of water splashed against her face from above. Uzume was crying. "Thank you, Uzume."

Jenny smiled before nodding to Kazehana. They all proceeded to the window, opened it, and Kazehana led the way out, using her powers to slow their descent to the ground.

"Dante, we got her. Heading to the meeting point." Jenny said into her earpiece.  
"We'll be there soon, just need to wrap things up."

_Back in front_

Dante and Tobias were back to back, facing the two fighters.

"How's it going?" Dante asked, keeping his blades up.

"Not bad. She's a good fighter." Tobias responded. "But shall we wrap this up?"

The grounds had been torn up with the four fighters clashing and the girls seemed slightly winded while Tobias and Dante looked better.

"How the hell can humans keep up like this?" Toyotama asked, holding her lance up.

"Simply put, we're stronger then you think. Tobias. Hold your breath."

Dante raised his hand and threw something down, resulting in a cloud of dark smoke to burst from it and surround the two.

"Hey!" Both girls shouted as they dived into the cloud, looking around in the smog.

"Come and face us you cowards!" Ichiya shouted.

"We've got what we wanted. This fighting has no point anymore."

The wind shifted and blew the smoke thin enough to see Dante and Tobias standing above them on air, too high to attack effectively.

"If you want a rematch, you'll have to wait. Until next time." Tobias sent a two fingered salute before grabbing Dante's arm and they both flew off, heading to the meeting point. As they did, Dante said, "Seo, pull back. Meet us at the meeting point."

"Got it."

_20 minutes later_

Dante and Tobias both landed in the alley. Everyone else was already there. Kazehana was pacing slightly, Akitsu looked calm as normal, Jenny looking calm as well, Kagari had his mask still on, Musubi looked happy for some reason, but Seo and the twins were missing. Uzume was holding Chiho using her cloth as a chair or maybe a bed for Chiho to rest on.

"I see it went fine." Dante stated as he spotted Chiho. He approached her and bowed respectfully. "Hello, my name is Dante. This is Tobias," he gestured, and Tobias also bowed.

Chiho smiled at them both. "Hello. I'm Chiho, I'm Uzume's Ashikabi."

"It's a pleasure. I understand you're sick."

Chiho nodded before turning to Uzume. "Why did you rescue me? I'm grateful, but they were the only ones capable of treating me. You can't go to MBI."

"Well, there's a third option she didn't know about until recently." Dante interjected. "I have what's needed to treat you, and in fact even cure you."

Chiho couldn't seemed to understand it. "I have a genetic disease, it can't be cured."

Dante smirked. "Trust me. When I'm done, you'll be healthy and free of this. But we'll need to get back to the inn to start. Shall we go?"

"What about Seo and the twins, they aren't here." Jenny said.

"They know where we live, unfortunately." Dante muttered the last part. "We need to get this done."

Uzume nodded in agreement. "I'll carry Chiho back." It wasn't a question.  
Everyone got ready to leave, Kagari picking up Jenny bridal style to her slight embarrassment. They all leaped up then, heading back to the inn.

_30 minutes later_

"So, this is Chiho." Miya smiled as she looked at the girl. "I've heard a lot about you from Uzume."

Chiho looked a bit shy under the attention. They were standing in Dante's room and Miya along with Dante and Uzume were standing in it, while Chiho was sitting on the bed. Everyone else(aside from Dante's Sekirei)had left to their own rooms to take care of personal matters.

"It wasn't easy, but we got her out. Plus, I left Higa a little gift. Matsu, come here please." Dante asked, looking up.

Matsu entered the room a minute later. "Yes?"

"Here, plug this into your computer network." Dante threw something at her and she caught it to see it was his cellphone.

"Why?"

"When we were talking to Higa, I took the liberty of hacking his phone and planting a homemade spider virus. Once you plug that in, you'll have access to his entire company network and personal network." Dante said smugly."Everything he knows, we know."

Matsu's mouth fell open and her eyes grew wide before she looked at his phone. She clasped both hands around it and nodded happily. "I'll do it right away!"

She ran down the hall again and they heard the slight slam of her door closing.

"You always plan ahead don't you?" Uzume asked, amused.

"Let's just say brain types have nothing on me in terms of strategy. Now, everyone besides Uzume, out. I need to start healing."

His Sekirei filed out, Musubi bouncing, Ku riding on her shoulders while Akitsu calmly looked at him before leaving. Miya, on the other hand, didn't leave.

"Miya. Please leave." Dante asked gently. She hesitated for a second before sighing, nodded, and left, closing the door behind her.

"Now, Uzume. I need you to promise me, whatever you see here can't be talked about until I say it can. Ok?"

Uzume nodded. "I understand."

"Good." Dante pulled his sonic from his pocket and flipped it on before scanning Chiho. "Just relax, I need to make sure nothing will interfere with the healing. You may also want to lay down." He advised Chiho.

She nodded and did so, Uzume deciding to take her hand to comfort her while Dante scanned her Ashikabi's body. After a second, he nodded. "Everything's fine. Let's get started."

He turned off the sonic, changed settings, then pointed it and turned it on again. A few seconds later, the TARDIS started flickering into existance before it solidified.

Dante went to the door, opened the panel, then did the same procedure as before to summon the nanogenes. He then pushed open the door and they floated out.

Dante went back to the bed and knelt besides it, the nanogenes buzzing around him. "Now, this is going to tingle. Just try not to squirm."

He held up his hand, the nanogenes concentrated on it, then he gently placed it on Chiho's forehead. The tiny machines flowed from his hand and over Chiho's entire body. She winced slightly and Uzume asked worriedly, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, it just feels odd. Like pins and needles." Chiho assured her.

"That's normal. Genetic damage isn't easy to fix, but it can be done with the right equipment."

"What are these?" Chiho asked, holding up a hand to look at the glittering surrounding her.

"Long story short, microscopic machines that are manipulating your genetic information in order to fix and heal your disease."

"But... How do you have something like this? Higa's hospital was cutting edge but they didn't have anything like this." Chiho said confused.

Dante turned his head, casting his eyes in shadow. "Let's just say I've been alive for a long time and collected a few items in my travels."

Uzume stared at the tenet of Izumo Inn. Dante had a lot of sides. She had seen him happy, serious, angry, concerned, but this...this was sad. And not a normal sad, this went deeper, heavier then the one she had been under when Chiho had been in that hospital. Some type of sadness she never knew he had.

Dante stood up then, startling Uzume out of her thoughts. "The treatment will take another 15 minutes to finish. Knock on the door when it's done."

The Timelord walked to the TARDIS and opened the door, closing it behind him and leaving the couple alone.

"Is he always like this?" Chiho asked.

Uzume shook her head. "No. I've never seen him so sad."

Chiho looked back at the TARDIS. "Does he talk about himself?"

"No. But he was planning to soon."

Chiho smiled. "Well, at least he agreed to help you. I couldn't thank him enough for that." She said, looking at her Sekirei. Uzume's eyes teared up and she sniffed. "Neither could I." She sobbed, hugging her Ashikabi as she finally accepted she was with her and freed from Higa's influence, thanks to Dante.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

"Interesting." Dante mused as he looked up from the microscope he was using. "Bravo MBI, this would definitely work."

Ever since Dante had left Chiho and Uzume alone, about 10 minutes ago, he had been in the medical bay, studying a blood sample he had taken from the person lying on the bed behind him.

"So, if that's the way you control Sekirei, it should be easy enough to hack and change. Don't you agree Yomi?"

Yomi was on the bed behind him, eyes closed and breathing gently while an EKG was keeping track of her heartbeat.

The device he had attached to her all that time ago had been a speical teleportation device that he had programmed to take her to the TARDIS, for two reasons. One, despite how much he hated her, he didn't think Sekirei were things to be reprogrammed at will. Second, he wanted to study the crest and figure out its function in the game, and he might have just cracked it.

"Nano bots. That's good, that's... inspired." He laughed as he looked at the microscope.

Yomi's blood had been laced with nano bots, surprisingly sophisticated for this time, but he shouldn't be surprised considering MBI's resources. The nano bots served two functions. Firstly, tracking devices and broadcasting information about bodily functions so MBI will know when a Sekirei was deactivated. The second was deactivation. The nano bots were programmed with the task that when a Sekirei was deactivated, they stopped the brain functions that governed movement and consciousness. They didn't kill Sekirei, but they were rendered helpless.

"Well, now that I know that, this'll be a peice of cake to deal with." Dante chuckled. He heard an alarm sound and a computerized voice stated, "Teleportation breach. Arrival imminent."

Dante smirked as a blue light flashed and the Sekirei from earlier, both of them, appeared on two of the other beds. They were both dressed in a hospital gown like Yomi and knocked out.

"Perfect." Dante smirked before clapping his hands twice. "Kell-R!"

_"Coming, coming! Oof! Ow!"_

A scootering noise was heard from the hallway as the door opened to reveal a medium sized silver colored robot that hovered over the ground. It had a rectangular shapped head, a bean shaped body, and two little arms with three pronged fingers. This little guy was Kell-R, a Kryptonian service robot that was made and given to Dante by Jor-El, Kal-El aka Clark Kent aka Superman's father. Of course this was before Krypton's destruction, and since it was a fixed point, Dante could only go back to the planets' past. Like most robots, this one had a metallic voice that was high pitched and had an inserted personality interface. Kell-R's personality was a bit clumsy, but he was a good soul-uh-robot. Suprisingly despite his clumsiness, Kell-R managed to carry out tasks perfectly.

"We got two more. Take care of them please."

_"Right!"_

Dante checked his watch. "Treatment should be about done. Kell-R, you're on your own again. Make sure these three are properly cared for while I'm busy."

_"Yes sir!"_ The robot saluted. Dante chuckled as he walked from the medical bay and through the TARDIS's hallways back to the control room just as the door knocked and he heard Uzume's muffled voice say, "Dante?"

"Coming."

Dante pushed open the door and he saw Uzume stood a small ways from the door.

"The nanogenes, they seem to have finished."

Dante closed the door behind him, leaving a crack open while he headed to chiho's side. The nanogenes were swirling in a golden cloud above Chiho, who seemed to have fallen asleep. Dante pulled out his sonic and scanned her while the nanogenes floated through the crack in the door, the door closing behind them. Dante smiled when he got the results.

"Cured. She'll be tired when she wakes up, but she no longer has the disease." He told her happily as he got up and turned. He was just in time to get hit in the chest as Uzume threw herself at him in a hug.

"Thank you." She mumbled into it. "I can't thank you enough for this."

Dante kept smiling as he hugged her back. "I don't leave people behind."

"Still, I didn't have anything to offer you, but you helped me regardless. Thank you."

Dante tapped the top of Uzume's head, making her look up at him as he said, "You're my friend. I always help my friends."

She nodded in understanding while Dante pulled back. "I'll leave you two alone."

Uzume settled besides her Ashikabi while Dante left the room, closing the door behind him.

"It went well I see."

Dante looked to see Tobias standing down the hall, leaning against his door.

"It did. Chiho will need physically therapy to rebuild her muscles, but she's perfectly healthy otherwise." Dante stated as he walked towards the stairs past Tobias, who followed behind him.

"This is getting complicated fast. After that fight, Higa is going to be out for blood and our reputations are going to skyrocket." Tobias mused.

"Indeed. But I'm not worried, are you?"

"A bit." The wind wielder admitted. "I'm use to stressful situations, but I'm use to moving freely. Being caged in this city is aggravating for me."

"I understand, but we need to do this. Where is everyone else anyways?" Dante asked, noticing Akitsu hadn't been waiting outside the door like normal.

"Dining room. Seo and the twins showed up a while ago. The twins are steamed too, for us ditching them."

"Well, let's not keep our guests waiting then."

The two teens walked down the hall to the dining room, Dante pulling the door open and walking through first.

Every eye in the room turned to him as he walked in. Dante's Sekirei were in a group on the right side of the table, Miya at the head, and Jenny at the foot of it, her back towards them before she turned.

Kazehana and Kagari were sitting away from the group, Kagari having changed into his normal clothes. Kazehana on the other hand was looking slightly irritated for some reason, and when Tobias sat next to her on his normal air cushion, she gave a huff and looked away from him, causing him to roll his eyes. Finally Seo and his Sekirei were all sitting behind Miya and leaning against the wall.

"You ditched us!" Was the first thing Seo said when Dante walked in.

"Good to see you too Seo." Dante muttered. "So glad you said hello."

"Screw hello, you ditched us, and without paying!" Seo shouted, looking down right pissed as he got up and walked towards Dante.

"For good reasons. Chiho needed healing as soon as possible, and I knew you knew where we lived. Here." Dante dug through his pockets for something, pulled out an envelope and held it out to Seo. "Your payment, in full."

Seo took it, and grumbled. "Helped you out and I get a measly 12,000 bucks. Cheapskate."

He should've just shut his mouth.

"Miyaaaa..." Dante asked sweetly, making Seo and everyone else freeze in fear. "Permission to do 'that', please."

Miya's smile was pure evil as she replied just as sweetly, "Of course Dante," convently forgetting she did not tolerate violence in her inn. Seo was sweating buckets while his Sekirei looked confused.

Tobias acted quickly and made a vacuum around his ears and Kazehana's to block out noise. Everyone who did not know what Dante had in mind kept looking confused until he shouted, "Man check!"

The resulting cry of pain shook the inn to its foundations.

Seo was curled on the floor with tears coming down his face as he held his family jewels tightly and both twins were looking between their Ashikabi and Dante with a mixture of shock, awe, and maybe a hint of respect.

"Now you know what to do next time he pisses you off." Dante nodded at the twins and both of them nodded.

"You're alright Dante." Hikari nodded, smirking. "How did we never think of that?"

"You seemed content with electrocuting him I recall." Tobias suggested, having dropped the vacuum around his ears.

"True. Well, we have to drag his sorry ass home now. See ya." Hibiki nodded before they grabbed one of Seo's arms each and dragging him out the door, the man still crying in pain as the door closed behind them. The room was quite for a minute before Jenny broke it.

"You've grown sadistic since I last saw you." She smirked as he sat down between his Sekirei putting Kusano on his lap.

"Really? What makes you say that?" Dante asked in a sarcastic and incredulous voice before he laughed.

"So, what are you planning to do now that Chiho is safe?" Miya asked curiously.

"Not sure. But I do know this, Higa is not going to be happy."

"That's an understatement." Kagari's snorted. "We took out two of his Sekirei, and after getting Uzume out from under his thumb, he'll be even more furious with us. Add the fact he has one of the largest collection of Sekirei, and this won't be easy."

"It's not so bad." Kazehana added in. "He may have numbers, but we have quality."

"She's right. We have most every type of Sekirei, brain, power, fist. And several high numbers." Dante pointed at each person in particular as he listed off, "Number 02 Matsu, Number 03 Kazehana, Number 06 Kagari, Number 07 Akitsu, Number 88 Musubi, and Number 108 Kusano." He rubbed the top of Kusano's head, making her hum happily. "Actually, I never asked, what number are you Uzume?"

Uzume smiled like a cat. "Number 10."

Tobias rose and eyebrow. "Ok. You make a good point. And the fact that you and I can fight only adds to the fire power. Still, we'll need to be careful."

"True." Dante nodded. "But let's not stay on this train of thought. We freed our friends Ashikabi, and with no loss to us." He gently moved Ku off and got up, smiling wide. "We need to celebrate."

"That's what I said, but Tobias is being a killjoy." Kazehana growled unhappily, crossing her arms.

Dante looked at Tobias, who shrugged. "I'm not letting her drink still. She hasn't given me a reason."

Dante nodded in understanding. "Regardless, I'm going to cook up something speical. Should be done in an hour."

And with that, Dante left the room and got down to work.

_1 hour later_

"Cheers!" Everyone cried as they clinked toghther glasses.

Dante had done the near impossible in an hour. Not only did he prepare and cook a wide variety of food in celebration of Chiho and Uzume being free of Higa, he had also decorated the dining room in a festive way. Streamers in pink and red were hanging from the ceiling along with some traditional lanterns, seemingly floating in mid air, while a black banner over head said in light red, _"Congrats Uzume and Chiho."_

Currently most everyone was holding a cup of tea, which Dante had made personally with some special leaves. The only person who wasn't having tea was Ku, who had instead taken a juice box.

Miya took a sip of her tea and an eyebrow rose in pleasant surprise. "This is quite good."

"Thank you. Grew the leaves myself." Dante smiled as he sipped his own, take his time to savor it. Unlike most teas which were bitter, this tea was an interesting combination of sweet and savory, with a hint of several spices such as cinnamon and mint to name a few. It reenergized the body, refresed the mind, and was enjoyable to drink.

"How do you find the time to grow the leaves?" Kagari asked, eyebrow raised.

"Truth be told, I only need to sleep 90 minutes a day. Leaves me with a lot of spare time."

Matsu, who had chosen to leave her room and join in the celebrations, looked confused. "But where did you grow these? You don't have any place set up to grow tea leaves."

"I'm a man of many secrets." Was the cryptic response the Sekirei received, much to her displeasure.

Tobias was drinking his tea. "So, any particular benifts in drinking this?" He asked before taking a deep drink, liking the beverage.

"Well, the body and mind are reenergized, stops the brain from being turned to mush, it's delicious to drink, plus it'll make you horny as hell."

Tobias spat out his mouthful in shock and started coughing as some of the liquid went down the wrong pipe.

"Really?" Kazehana asked, for some reason being interested in that statement.

"No. I just said that to scare the crap out of him." The Timelord chuckled as Tobias was thumping his chest to make sure everything was in order. The silver eyed teen glared at Dante.

"You're a sick bastard." He growled, wiping his mouth.

"Yep!"

Jenny shook her head and muttered, "Boys," as she drank from her own cup.

Uzume and Chiho weren't really paying attention to the in house entertainment. Uzume had changed into her normal clothes and was sitting comfortably besides Chiho, who was sitting in a wheelchair. Until she had time to build back up her leg muscle strength, since she wasn't strong enough to stand, resulting in the need for the chair. The stairs weren't a problem as Uzume would carry her Ashikabi up and down the stairs without complaint. In fact, she seemed to enjoy it.

"Hey Chiho, how did you and Uzume meet anyways?" Tobias called. Most conversation stopped as most everyone turned, curious about that as well.

Chiho blushed slightly under all the attention before she stuttered out, "W-well, I was in the hospital for treatment of my illness."

Dante had paused with the subject that had been brought up and was listening intently, his gaze fixed firmly on the pair as the story went on.

"Since my condition kept me in the hospital for treatment, I would often be kept indoors. But there was a small wooded area I liked to go to when I was allowed outside."

Uzume smiled fondly as she thought back to that place. "I remember that. We first met there."

Chiho nodded, also smiling. "I was sitting in the glade when I heard something, looked up, and there you were."

"What were you doing there?" Tobias asked the star shirted Sekirei, looking curious.

Said Sekirei rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "I was, uh, kinda running from MBI after breaking out Matsu."

Everyone looked at the redhead, who blushed slightly while grinning. "It's true."  
"Anyways, I was running from the Displinary Squad and looking for a place to hide, so I spotted the wooded area and headed on there. I was in a tree and in my Sekirei outfit when I met Chiho. Needless to say I was a bit of a surprise."

"Yes you were. When I first saw you on that branch, you reminded me of a bird."

Dante and most everyone else in the room smiled at the apt description, since Sekirei also translated to Wagtail, a type of bird that was normally caged.

"Well, after that I couldn't stay away." Uzume took up the story, as well as chiho's hand. "Even after I left, I headed back most everyday to visit her. This went on, then finally we just...clicked."

Uzume's smile was radiant and pure joy when she looked at Chiho. "I found my Ashikabi. We've been linked ever since."

Musubi clapped toghther happily. "That's wonderful! You found your destined one, and you both cared for each other!"

Everyone threw in comments showing how happy they were for them while Dante remained silent, looking at his cup and tilting it to swirl the drink inside, thinking.

Uzume's story had struck him deep. She had been released into a world she didn't fully understand, not knowing the people or the landscape as well as most anybody did. But she pushed through it, going through day by day until by chance she met Chiho. Her destined person she would be linked to and love forever, and who would love her in return. The purest kind of love there was.

He didn't know why, but right now Dante was feeling all his years press down on him. He had been to places and done things most life forms never even dreamed of doing or seeing. He had met people, dear friends, powerful eneimes, and people he loved. Wheather as a friend, commrad, or in some cases, a lover. And he loved them with all his hearts.

But unlike the Sekirei and their Ashikabi, he always had to go. Had to leave those he cared for behind, because he had other things he needed to do. Other universes and people to save, other things to see. Sometimes, rarely, he would ask them to come with him, and they would agree. Most of the time, they stayed behind and he was left alone. Old, loved maybe, but in the end, almost always alone.

"Dante?"

He blinked and looked up to see everyone looking at him concerned, Miya having a hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"Are you alright?" Kagari asked, concern clearly eteched into his voice.

"Fine, why?"

"You're crying, big brother." Kusano told him, pointing at his face. Dante touched his cheeks and were surprised to find them wet. He had been so deep in thought he hadn't even noticed when he had started to silently shed tears.

"Sorry, just thinking too hard." Dante passed off, wiping his eyes and cheeks before sniffing. He stood, brushing off Miya's hand and said, "I'll be right back, I just...I need a minute."

He walked quitely through the door and everyone heard the soft sounds of footsteps going up the stairs, then the sound of a door opening and closing.

Everyone looked at each other, bewildered, before Kazehana said the question on everyone's mind.

"What was that all about?"

_Inside the bedroom, some time later_

Dante was sitting at the desk with the laptop running, his feet on the desk while he clicked through some photos he had on it. For some reason, he felt like going through some old reminders. Currently on the screen was him, arm around the shoulder of The Doctor in his 11th regeneration, with the Doctor's arm around his shoulder. Both of them standing in the TARDIS, smiles on their faces. Two guys in a box off to see universes.

Dante clicked the mouse again. Now it showed him, training in hand to hand combat against Jenny. Him blocking a high right kick from her, both of them smiling and fighting on a plain, the grass waving in the breeze at the moment of capture.

Dante sighed and snapped his laptop shut.

"What the hell is wrong with me?" He muttered to himself as he put his feet on the floor and laptop on the desk.

What was wrong with him? He hadn't broken down like that in centuries. Now though he couldn't seem to have helped what had happened earlier. Maybe it had to do with his Sekirei and the bond they had formed.

He had studied the seal in depth and it had revealed more about the bond. It was more then just a low level telepathic link, it was fusion in a sense. Their emotions had been welded together, fused on a deep level just enough that they could sense each other. Their very identities had, on a microscopic scale, be fused. And having multiple Sekirei, he would've been more open and receptive towards emotions, including his own.

Dante sighed again and rubbed his eyes in frustration. Things were accelerating, he couldn't afford to get distracted now. The game was getting more and more dangerous by the hour as more and more Sekirei were winged. Soon stage two would start, and if he ws right, things were going to go downhill with no way to stop.

His thoughts were interrupted as the door opened behind him and he heard, "Dante? Are you all right?"

Dante looked over his shoulder and saw Musubi standing in the door. She looked worried.

"Hey Musubi." Dante turned back to the desk. "Yeah I'm fine. Just thinking."  
He heard Musubi's footsteps behind him before her arms wrapped around him.

"What's wrong Dante?" She asked gently, concern in her voice.

"Nothing."

"Dante, we're linked. Me, Ku, Akitsu, and Matsu can all feel when you're fine...and when you're sad." The Sekirei said in a tone saying she wouldn't drop this. "What's wrong?"

Dante sighed. There was now no excuse he could use.

"A lot of stuff Musubi. The Sekirei Plan mostly. How I'm going to deal with Higa and, forgive me for saying this, that idiot of a game master the Professor."

Surprisingly Musubi didn't object to Dante's discription of the man who had "raised" her. All she did was hug him closer, letting him know she was here.

They stayed like that for a minute, then Dante asked, "How's everyone else?"

"Fine. Akitsu and Ku are taking a bath. Matsu's in her room."

"Hhmm. How about everyone else?"

"Most of them went to bed."

"Really?" Dante checked his watch and was surprised to see it was 10:30 at night. "Hhmm. I was up longer then I thought."

He felt Musubi nod against him and Dante shifted, standing up.

"Well, I'll go see how those two are doing." He started leaving the room when he felt a hand grab his. He looked at it, surprised, before looking at Musubi. She had gone through that odd change again, and now had a look in her eyes that was almost never there. Determination and caring.

"You can open up about what you're feeling Dante. You don't have to always hide it."

Dante couldn't help it. He leaned in, eyes narrowed as he searched Musubi's. "Who are you?"

The fist type Sekirei smiled, her eyes mischievous. "A friend." She said simply.  
The look left Musubi's eyes and she blinked, confused.

"Is something wrong Dante?" The girl asked in her normal, innocent voice.  
Sighing, he pulled back and shook his head. "No, everything's fine. Why don't we get the others and head to bed?"

"Ok!" The girl said happily.

They left the room, Dante feeling more lost and confused then ever before.

_3 days later_

_He was standing on top of a building, judging by how high up he was in comparison with the other buildings around him it must have been some kind of skyscraper. Surrounding him on all sides were large metal boxes of various shapes and sizes that he recognized as power boxes used to bring power and electricity to the many functions of the building he was standing on. They thrummed and buzzed with a life of their own, the noise presenting an ambient music to the scene that played out before him._

_Off in the distance he could see the large clocktower that made up MBI's headquarters, and around the tallest building were smaller skyscrapers around the same height as the one he now stood upon._

_Below that were more buildings, smaller buildings that made up the majority of the metropolis known as Shinto Teito. And below even that were the many roadways that carved a path through the city, angular and sharp lines of black the cut the population center of cement and steel into multiple segmented city blocks that seemed to stretch on as far as the eye can see._

_None of this held his attention however, that belonged to her. She was a young woman whose frame was being partially eclipsed by the sun. His enhanced eyesight was more than capable of making out a few of her features and dress, long blond hair swaying in a breeze, followed by a black dress with wide sleeves followed by a white underdress. The outfit was finished off with long brown boots that rode up to just a little below her ankles, black stockings that reached the halfway point of her thighs, and a black choke with white frills around her neck. Her bearing was proud, even with her back turned to him the blond woman stood tall, feet spaced closely together in the shape of an L, and her arms crossed under an impressive bust._

_It was in that moment that he knew he was dreaming, and that this woman was a Sekirei who was reacting to him. The dream was too real, too lifelike. He could feel the wind as it rustled against his clothes, and the stench of pollution and metal hung in the air, invading his senses. It was exactly how his other dreams panned out with the two other Sekirei who had reacted to him.  
_

_His presence didn't go unnoticed by the woman, Sekirei, before him. The woman turned around, revealing blue eyes that were bespotted with rage._

_"I finally found you, you bastard!" she said, turning more fully so she could point a quivering finger at him, a snarl on her face. "I'll kill you!"_

_He had nothing to do except say calmly, "Good luck with that."_

Dante woke up with a slight jerk.

"Damn, I wasn't expecting her reaction so soon." He muttered quitely, looking up at the ceiling. He felt someone shift and mumble something, promoting him to look down.

There they were, his Sekirei were all sleeping against him. His left arm was occupied by Musubi. Dante could not remember if he had wrapped it around her when they had gone to sleep, or done so sometime in the middle of the night, either way she was much closer to him than last time. A feat in and of itself considering just how clingy the excitable Sekirei was. He was also surprised she was able to get so close without her chest getting in the way, considering just how large her bust was. The brunette had burrowed herself directly into his torso, and her chest was literally mashed up against his so tightly they looked like a set of balloons that were about to burst. Unlike the last time, where she had been using Dante chest as her pillow, this time her head was resting on his shoulder, it was a wonder the appendage she was using hadn't fallen asleep. If he were honest, she looked quite adorable while sleeping.

And yes, just like the last few times she had fallen asleep, Musubi was drooling on his bare skin.

Akitsu was on his other side. While, much like Musubi, his arm had wrapped itself around her sometime during the night, the snow woman was in a much different position than number eighty eight. Because Akitsu was a few centimeters taller than Musubi, she could not use his shoulder as a pillow. Instead her chest was being pushed partly against his shoulder and partly against his chest, while her head was resting within the crook of his neck. Dante felt himself shiver slightly as the ice user breathed on him, her breath chilly like a cool winter breeze. Despite how cold it was, the feel of her exhales on the bare skin of his neck were not unpleasant.

And like normal, Akitsu and Musubi were not the only Sekirei who had chosen to partake in sleeping with him. Matsu had also decided to join in on the festivities ever since he had winged her. Seeing as how Dante had run out of limbs to claim, the glasses wearing Sekirei had chosen to sleep on top of him, which would explain why his breathing felt slightly constricted. She was sprawled out directly on top of his torso, lying off on, half off of him as she continued to snooze while using his chest as a pillow. To be honest, the position didn't look that comfortable, and he was not quite sure how she could actually sleep like that. Then again, if she was as dedicated of a hacker as he assumed she was, than Matsu was probably used to sleeping while sitting up, a position that was even more uncomfortable than her current one.

It was the last member that the Timelord found to be the most intriguing. Unlike his other three Sekirei, Kusano had not gone to sleep with him last night, but went to bed in Miya's room. He should know, he had tucked her in and read her a story after all. It looked like she had snuck out of the landlady's room some time during the middle of the night in order to sleep with him. Dante was not quite sure how the little sprite managed to pull such a thing off, surely someone of Miya's caliber would have noticed a little girl sneaking out of her bedroom at night.

Currently, the little blond was sleeping at the foot of his bed, wearing a cute pair of green pajamas, long sleeved top and bottom, that Dante had bought for her due to their color. He had thought it appropriate for a Sekirei who grew plants to wear green. She was curled up like a cat as she used his legs as a pillow, taking a page from Musubi's book as she drooled on his legs. While her head was resting on him, the rest of her body was on the memory foam mattress of the bed. Dante was once again very pleased to have decided to go with an actual bed rather than the more traditional futon, and that the bed was rather large, a queen size, otherwise he was sure the girl would be quite uncomfortable since she would have been forced to actually sleep on top of him.

Like always Musubi and Akitsu were wearing their standard choice of sleepwear. Musubi was in her bloomers and was not wearing a bra, as Dante could easily attest to with the way her nipples were rubbing against him. And Akitsu was wearing one of his shirts, an AC/DC shirt it looked like. And once again, he noticed with more amusement then anything else, she was not wearing any panties. Surprisingly enough, the one that he believed was the most perverted of his... harem, was wearing surprisingly conservative sleepwear. The clothing she had chosen to sleep in was a semi-sheer light pink teddy with thin spaghetti straps going around her shoulders. It was cut to about mid-thigh, an oddly modest length for the red head, and beneath that was a standard set of white bra and panties. It was a touch seduction and could, in some cases be considered risque, but it was far less immodest than what he had originally expected from his newer Sekirei.

Dante moved his gaze back to the ceiling, thinking while his Sekirei used him as a teddy bear.

He knew exactly who had reacted to him, but he didn't know where she was. He also knew she wanted to kill him. Dante snorted.

'If an enraged female could kill me, I'd've died a llllloooonnngg time ago.'

That still left the problem of the reaction. Reacting Sekirei needed to be winged, otherwise they could seriously hurt themselves and/or others. The problem was she clearly did not want to be winged. It was a conundrum.

Dante sighed again.

"Maybe some late night strolls will help me relax. What time is it anyways?"

He looked at the clock set on a stand next to the bed, the digital machine saying **1:30 A.M.**

Dante nodded. He ws rested now anyways, might as well do something. The problem was getting out of his pleasurable death trap.

_10 minutes later_

"Damn it, I need to rig a teleporter or something. So much easier." The teen grumbled, having just gotten out of his prison. It had taken several maneuvers, close calls, and gambles that anyone else would've lost, but Dante had managed to worm his way out of his dog piled Sekirei while leaving Musubi in his place to keep the others asleep for the time being.

Dressing up in a regular shirt and jeans, Dante went to the closet and silently opened it, pulling out his duffle bag. Pulling the zipper, he pulled out his armor and started strapping it on, leaving him standing in it after a few minutes.

He slipped on the mask and it hummed to life, pulling up the display and the several filters. Dante selected thermal and looked around, making sure everyone else was still asleep.

On this floor he saw Tobias's and Kazehana's room, with the wind users apparently side by side, with the Sekirei holding her Ashikabi. Uzume was in her room with Chiho in the same position.

He glanced down to see Miya was laying in bed, but her body heat wasn't the same as the other sleeping tenets, suggesting she was awake.

Dante checked Jenny's room and saw she was asleep, but Kagari seemed to be missing, which was surprising. He had taken to sleeping with his Ashikabi just like the others, but his heat signature was missing.

'Must be out doing his Guardian thing.' He thought, not entirely surprised now that he thought about it. Dante headed to the window, opened it, then jumped out, vanishing in a blur. He reappeared on a building across the street and looked back. Nobody had moved and he nodded, satisfied, before he turned off the thermal filter. He then turned and started roof jumping, running along and jumping off buildings much like other Sekirei did, but smoother and faster.

Dante didn't have a specific destination in mind, he was just jumping through the city and keeping a look out on the north side. Truth be told, Shinto Teito was huge and he couldn't go through it entirley, but he could keep a lookout on his district. But right now the city was subdued in the gentle hug of night, so he just wandered.

He eventually found a construction sight of a building, the metal beams in place but nothing else was built. He also spotted a black figure on the upper levels.  
Dante jumped up the building until he landed on a beam above the figure, who had their arms crossed and back to him.

**"Morning Kagari."** The time lord said, stanidng above the fire user.

"Morning Dante. You're up early."

**"Like I said at the party, I really only need 90 minutes of sleep a day."**

Kagari looked up and over his shoulder. "But that's not the reason you're up, is it? Not if you're in armor."

**"Good assessment."** The teen stepped off his beam to the one below him. Both of the superhumans looked out at the skyline, taking in the sight and sounds as the wind whistled through the metal structure. Eventually Dante broached the subject. **"I had a dream."**

Kagari cocked an eyebrow. "Oh?"

**"A Sekirei dream."**

"Another one? How on earth do you get all of these reactions?" The man asked, shaking his head in bewilderment.

**"No clue. It's not like I'm actively trying to get more,"** Dante defended himself. **"They just come to me."**

"Fine, fine. What did they look like?"

**"Wavy blonde hair, about my height, attractive. I have to ask, is that a given with Sekirei?"**

"In a way yes. But go on."

**"She wore old fashioned clothes. A black dress with wide sleeves, a white underdress, long brown boots, black stockings, and a black choke with white frills around the neck."**

Kagari snapped his head around, eyes wide and clearly shocked.

"What?!" He practically shouted.

**"You know her?"**

Kagari didn't answer right away. He was rubbing his brow and rambling on. "I knew you had a knack for trouble, but this is something else. Why on Earth did she have to react to you?"

**"I'm not going to like what you have to say next, am I?"**

"Not at all. That woman is trouble. You're going to need to talk to Matsu for the details, but that woman is Number 09 Tsukiumi. And she is extremely dangerous."

Dante sighed. **"Of course she is. She's reacting to me, she wants to kill me, and to top it all off, she's dangerous."**

He rubbed his mask. Truth be told, he knew who exactly Tsukiumi was, but for the sake of appearances, which he had been losing lately, he needed to appear ignorant.

**"All right. I'll ask Matsu in..."** He checked his mask interface for the time. 4:30 A.M. **"A few hours."**

The stood there for another few minutes, then Kagari broke it. "Let's head back, Jenny doesn't know I left and I don't want her worried when she wakes up."

The time lord smiled under his mask. **"You go do that. I, on the other hand, will be out looking for Ms. 09."**

Kagari looked at Dante in shock. Again. "You want to go look for someone who wants to kill you!?"

**"If she could kill me, then I should've died a long time ago. At most I want to talk to her, maybe cut down on the areas she could be. But I'll be back home in an hour."**

Before the other person could object, Dante crouched and leaped off the beam, flipping through the air before landing on another building and taking off in a burst of dust.

Kagari sighed. "If I didn't already have white hair, he'd have caused it to happen."

_2 hours later_

"Akitsu, can you set the table please?" Dante asked, turning down the heat on the stove top under the pot of steamed rice.

"Ah...ok." She nodded, moving to the cupboards.

"Thank you. Ku, can you help bring this into the dining room?" He asked, handing her a handful of chop sticks set on top of folded napkins.

"Ok!" The young Sekirei chirped happily, skipping as she left.

Dante had gotten back an hour ago and changed out of his armor before his Sekirei had woken up to stat the day. Everyone else was as well, except for Uzume and Chiho. Currently Tobias was doing his morning meditation while everyone else was watching Musubi and Miya's morning training session. Dante was making breakfast, with Akitsu and Ku helping.

"Ok, here we go." Dante grabbed the pot off the stove top. He had decided on a traditional Japanese breakfast today. Steamed rice, Miso soup with Tofu, chopped green onions, wakame seaweed and fishcakes, Nato that had been lightly seasoned with soy sauce, Nori dipped in soy sauce and rolled up with some rice, Tamagoyaki, and broiled salted salmon. It was a large breakfast, but factoring in the number of people in the house hold, how much his Sekirei ate, and how hungry he was, this food wouldn't last an hour before being gone.

Dante made a few trips to bring everything into the room and set it on the table. Once he did and everything was set, he nodded, satisfied. "Perfect. I'll go wake up Uzume and Chiho. Can you go get everyone else please?"

"Ok big brother."

"Ah...ok."

Both females left then room and Dante called after them, "Oh, and make sure to suprise Tobias!"

Chuckling, Dante headed up the stairs. It wasn't long before he reached the door to Uzume's and now Chiho's room. He raised a hand, about to knock, when the sound of voices from inside reached his ear.

"How about a morning kiss?" a sultry voice asked. It was definitely Uzume, he would recognize that teasing voice anywhere. It was beginning to sound like Miya enguld have plenty of reason to be making sure the two weren't doing anything that went against her rule of house decency. He had to hand it to the cloth using Sekirei, she certainly enjoyed getting an early start when it came to initiating sexual escapades with her Ashikabi.

"U-Uzume," came the slightly stuttering voice of Chiho. She sounded pretty embarrassed. "I-I don't think that would be such a good idea right now."

"Aww, why not?"

"Because Miya might find out, then we'd be in trouble."

"Come on, she won't find out. Just one little kiss." Dante couldn't quite tell from where he stood, but judging from the way her voice had changed, he got the feeling the tomboyish Sekirei was puckering her lips. Of course, the fact that he could hear 'smooching' noises normally associate with someone puckering their lips for a kiss also helped.

"You said that last time," Chiho mumbled, and Dante got a very vivid mental image of the young Ashikabi cartooned out anime style with a large sweat drop on the back of her head. It was an oddly amusing image, and the teen had to withhold a chortle, lest the pair hear him.

"Miya can't be here all the time," Uzume declared dismissively. "Besides, she's probably still sparring with Musubi. We should use the time she has given us wisely by partaking in whatever... enjoyable activities we can while Miya is distracted."

"I-I don't know."

"Please?"

There was a second of silence that soon stretched into two. Figuring that whatever it was Uzume was doing to make her Ashikabi's will waver, Dante decided it would be the perfect time to step in and mess with the pair.

With post haste Dante opened the door and slammed it wide, startling the two occupants enough for them both to shriek in fright as he strolled in with a wide grin. "Good morning you two!" he shouted exuberantly. "I hope you both slept well." He looked at the pair, noting how Uzume was practically on top of Chiho and holding the girl rather close due to her fright, while Chiho herself looked frazzled. The look only lasted for a moment, at least for Uzume, who managed to recover enough to narrow her eyes at him.

"Dammit bro!" Uzume swore, her face a mask of childish looking anger. In other words, she was puffing her cheeks like Kusano did when she was angry, but not quite angry enough to use her molars on him. "I was this close, this close!" she told him, holding her left hand up and making a measuring gesture with her index finger and thumb.

"And you are very lucky that it was me who interrupted you when you were that close," he replied brightly. His answer didn't please Uzume, who narrowed her eyes. At least, until he continued and said, "because if I hadn't come up here, Miya most likely would have," which made the anger on the tomboy's face evaporate and replace itself with a look of pale, wide eyed horror. With a smug grin, the only male in the room finished with, "so you should consider yourself lucky as far as I'm concerned."

"See, Uzume," Chiho spoke up suddenly, giving her Sekirei a slightly chastising look. "Dante could have just as easily been Miya, and then we would have been in even more trouble for breaking her 'no indecent acts' policy."

"Aww," Uzume sighed as the wind was taken out of her sails. Her shoulders drooped and her face adopted a 'kicked puppy' look that made Dante almost regret barging in on them. Almost. "Fine, fine, I get it, no kissing, no groping and definitely no passionate love making while living in Izumo Inn."

She grinned, ignoring Chiho's stuttering cry of 'U-Uzume!' as she leaned in close to her Ashikabi's face, so close their noses were almost touching. "Wanna go to a love hotel with me so we can have some fun there?" The question made the younger girls already beat red face turn a shade of such red that Dante was surprised the girl hadn't passed out yet. She looked almost like a boiled lobster!

Chiho opened and closed her mouth several times, though no words came out. It looked like she was trying to do her best impression of a fish. Her eyes had gotten wide and her pupils had dilated. Dante didn't know what was going on inside of the young teenagers mind, but he could almost swear he saw steam pouring out of her ears, though that could just be his imagination. Deciding it would probably be best to intervene before poor Chiho reached critical mass and ended up passing out from overloading her brain with naughty images, Dante coughed into his hand.

"Not that I want to interrupt your personal time together or anything," he started lightly, ignoring the glare Uzume sent his way, because she probably knew he had come in when she had been trying to steal a kiss from her Ashikabi on purpose. Not that she had any proof, haha. "But breakfast is ready, and well, I don't think you two want to come downstairs looking like that." At his words, both Chiho and Uzume looked down at themselves. Chiho was waring a set of light beige pijamas, they were cute, but nothing special. Uzume on the other hand...

Well, aside from a pair of white panties that covered her tight, firm derriere, she was wearing nothing, leaving her large chest completely exposed to the cool morning air and Dante's eyes. Something she seemed to have forgotten with everything that had been going on around her.

"Eek!" Strangely enough, it was Chiho who squeaked in horror as she realized her Sekirei was half naked, more like three fourths naked but she wasn't one for semantics like that. The point was, her Uzume's breasts were exposed to the other occupant, and that was embarrassing. "U-Uzume! Cover up quickly!"

"Eh?" Uzume blinked, her eyes going from glaring at Dante to looking at her Ashikabi in confusion. "Eh!?" her voice became startled with Chiho grabbed onto the blanket they had been using on the futon and tossed it over her head. "EH!" This cry of startlement increased in volume when she was bodily tackled by her Ashikabi, who was doing her best to cover the large chested Sekirei up with her blanket. It was a tad late to be worrying about modesty now, but Dante had to give the girl points for trying.

"C-Chiho! Get this thing off me! I can't see!"

"I'm sorry Uzume!" Chiho cried, still holding onto her Sekirei and keeping the blanket over her head. "I'm just trying to protect your modesty!" Dante couldn't help but snort at those words.

"What modesty?" he asked, amused.

"Shut up you!" Uzume growled from under the blankets. "Chiho, baby, even if you want to protect my modesty – and don't you even start Dante! – I can't get dressed with this thing and you covering me like this." Chiho blinked, then blinked again, then blinked once more for good measure before she finally seemed to realize that, yes, it would definitely be difficult, if not impossible, for her Sekirei to get dressed whilst a large sheet was covering her.

"Ah, sorry!" Chiho was quick to release her hold on the tomboyish Sekirei, jerking back as if scalded. As Uzume removed the covers from herself, once more revealing her body in all it's large chested glory, Chiho turned to look at Dante with pleading eyes. "Dante, could you please leave while Uzume and I get dressed?" she asked, causing the hybrid in question to withhold a sigh.

Truth be told he kind of wanted to tease the girl some more, or at least, he wanted to tease Uzume some more. Still, he had decided that this would be enough for now. Besides he didn't want to alienate the poor girl he was trying to help recover from a nearly debilitating illness.

"Sure," he said, turning around so he could walk back out of the door. "I'll just wait outside while you two get ready." He slowly shut the door behind him, then leaned against wall and crossed his arms while he waited, softly chuckling all the while.

Oh, he hadn't pranked anyone like that in years, and he had forgotten the thrill of a successful one.

"I got to do that more often." He mused, still chuckling.

Uzume's and Chiho's room then began to open. That was fast, he noted as he pushed off the wall and watched as Uzume walked out in her usual jean and purple star shirt combination, while pushing along Chiho in the wheel chair they had gotten.

The waifish Ashikabi was wearing a pair of pink sweat pants several shades darker than the pajamas she had on, and a normal white shirt. It was hard for him to tell, seeing as how he had seen the girl every day, but Dante was positive that Chiho was looking a lot better than she used to, physically anyways. The girl was definitely filling out, where before her arms were rail thin and some of the skin had actually been beginning to suffer from cellulite due to her not having anything in the way of muscles. Now the girl was looking much healthier, he could see small muscles that had not been there before thanks to the diet he had put her on and the therapeutic sessions where he had used his several skills to repair as much of the damage done to her as possible. Likewise her chest, while not much bigger had increased enough that the Timelord had noticed it. This wasn't the act of a pervert, but simply an observation that let him know that his diet for her was working.

"You know, I think I'm beginning to hate you," Uzume commented as soon as the door closed behind her, the glare she cast at Dante letting him know who she was talking about. Apparently she was still sore from his small prank. Personally, Dante felt she should consider herself lucky, he had done far worse to other people in his youth.

"No you don't," Dante said with a bright smile as he fell into step with Uzume as she pushed her Ashikabi's wheelchair along. "You love me and you know it."

Uzume turned her head to the side, letting loose a 'humph' that got the Timelord chuckling some more. Below them, sitting in her wheelchair, Chiho giggled lightly into her hand. Her actions got the attention of the two walking her down to the dining room.

"What's so funny, Chiho?" asked Uzume.

"You two are," Chiho giggled again. When she removed her hand it allowed both of them to see her gentle smile. "It's always nice seeing how happy Uzume is when she's joking around with Dante. She always seems... happier, even though she complains all the time."

"Ah..." that was the only sound the now blushing Uzume could make. From where he stood Dante grinned when he saw that the Sekirei's own Ashikabi had struck her speechless.

"That's cuz Uzume loves me of course!" He declared, unable to restrain himself from getting another jab in at the cloth user. Uzume's right eye began to twitch, though her blush had yet to recede.

"Quiet you!" Both Chiho and Dante began to laugh at the embarrassed Sekirei. Well, Dante began to laugh, Chihoo giggled just a bit while giving her Sekirei a loving glance. Uzume's expression went from a combination of slightly embarrassed and angry, to thoroughly flustered in less than a second. The star shirted Sekirei quickly clammed up after that, seeming to realize that anything she said would most likely be turned against her by the hybrid.

They soon reached the staircase and, seeing as how Uzume was still refusing to speak, Dante decided to. "Alright, here we are," he said, looking over at the brunette Sekirei in the star shirt. "If you help Chiho, I'll carry her wheelchair."

"Ok, thank you," Uzume finally spoke, offering the male a grateful smile despite having been 'angry' with him a few seconds ago. What happened next was the star shirt clad Sekirei lifting her Ashikabi into her arms, while Dante grabbed the wheelchair, and both of them headed downstairs.

"Ha..." Chiho sighed a bit as she let her arms wrap around Uzume's shoulders. She looked down at the stairs she was being carried down and frowned. "I wish I could walk down the stairs on my own two feet."

"Aw, are you saying you don't like it when I carry you like this, Chiho-baby?" asked Uzume, her voice a faux pout and her face taking on an mock sad expression. She sniffed. "And here I was thinking you enjoyed being in my arms."

"Ah!" Chiho gasped as she realized how her words could be taken. "Th-That's not what I meant, Uzume!" she told her Sekirei fervently. Apparently, she had no clue that the alien cloth user she had bonded to was just pulling her leg. Behind them, Dante watched with an amused look on his face as the young teenager tried to placate the Sekirei who really did not need to be placated. "I love being held by Uzume! It's just that I–"

"He-heh," Uzume's customary chuckle made it's appearance once more as a grin crawled onto her face. "I'm just kidding, Chiho-baby." She chuckled again when her Ashikabi gave her a pout. Pressing a kiss to Chiho's forehead, Uzume went on to say, "I know exactly how you feel, I want you to be able to walk on your own two feet as well. That way when the Sekirei Plan is over we can go and visit all of those places I promised to take you to."

"Like the beach?" asked Chiho with a smile on her face.

"Yes," Uzume nodded, "like the beach."

Dante looked at the pair, sensing that their words held some kind of special meaning that only the two of them knew. Deciding it was once more time for him to get in his kicks, spoke up. "If you two want to go to the beach, might I suggest going to France? I hear they have some of the most amazing nude beaches in the world." His words caused Chiho's face to burn with embarrassment while Uzume stared at him wide eyed for a moment, before grinning.

"Wow, bro," she looked at him with a strange glint in her eyes that told him the young woman was going to get back at him with her next words. "I didn't know you were such a perv – EEK!" Whatever Uzume had been about to say, and he had a very good idea what her words would have been, was cut off when the star shirted Sekirei let out a loud shriek that had Chiho covering her ears as she literally leapt down the last two steps in shock.

She whirled on Dante, her face combining both anger and mortification beautifully as the time traveler walked down the last few steps very slowly, and placed the wheelchair back on the ground, all the while under Uzume's watchful glare. "You pinched my butt," she accused with a fierce glare and an even fiercer blush.

Dante, well, he just offered her a smile that was every bit as beatificial as Miya's. Clearly, he had been practicing. In fact, Dante had perfected his 'Miya techniques'.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said, and his words got Uzume's right eye to begin twitching violently.

"You... You..." she tried to speak, however, unable to find the words she wanted to say, Uzume ended up sighing. "Of course you don't," she grumbled as she set Chiho down on the wheelchair, then moved one of her now free hands towards her backside and rubbed it. Uzume sent the teen one more glare before gripping the handles of the wheelchair and beginning to push her Ashikabi towards the dining room. Dante followed behind her, taking a second to savor the moment of having successfully bothered the cloth user so thoroughly.

'Yep, I'm doing that more often.' Dante smirked.

The dining room was already filled by everyone else by the time Dante entered; Miya sat in seize at the head of the table like always, and as was normal for her, the lavender haired beauty had a smile on her face that crinkled her eyes.

Tobias was looking slightly irked and glared at as Dante when he entered, Kazehana sitting besides him and from what he could see, she also looked irritated. Most likely from withdrawal.

Jenny and Kagari were sitting side by side, Jenny with her arms crossed and eyes closed, waiting, Kagari the same way. Both ignored Uzume, who set down some pillows for Chiho before helping her sit down.

His Sekirei were the most interesting. Ku was sitting in her normal spot, clenching a pair of fork and spoon since she lacked the dexterity needed for chopsticks while his other Sekirei were against the wall, apparently waiting.

Dante went to his spot and sat down. Surprisingly Akitsu sat down on his right immediately. He still couldn't get over how fast she had moved to do so. Musubi instantly sat on his left, and looked at the food with stars in her eyes, clearly anxious to get started. That left Matsu to sit at the end of the table, but she didn't seem to bothered by it.

Dante smirked and said, "Well, don't just look at it. Dig in!"

Breakfast was noisy as usual, the moment everyone was allowed to start eating both Kusano and Musubi dove into their food like men... women... Sekirei possessed, while everyone loaded up and started eating. Though on the other side of the table, Jenny and Kagari were struggling not to look amused by Chiho and Uzume.

"Come on, open up and say 'aw'," the cloth user was saying as she held some salmon in her chopsticks in front of Chiho. Her Ashikabi had a large blush on her face at the brunette's attempt at feeding her, she looked quite self conscious.

"U-Uzume," Chiho muttered, her eyes flicking over to the others in the room as they watched on. Only Musubi and Kusano, who were to busy eating to pay attention, and Akitsu, who was to busy eating and staring at Dante to pay attention, were not focused on th act in front of them. The young girl shrunk further into herself from where she sat. "There are people watching."

"Eh?" Uzume glanced around and, almost as if she had just now realized they were not alone, noticed the several sets of eyes staring at her. Dante noticed that was something that happened quite often with the Sekirei in question, whenever she was with her Ashikabi, Uzume just seemed to forget about the rest of the world, like Chiho was the only one that matters. It was clear to all that they shared a strong bond.

Miya giggled lightly behind the sleeve of her kimono, the fabric hiding the curvature of her smiling lips. "It's so sweet to see you treating your Ashikabi so lovingly, Uzume." The lavenderette placed her free hand over her heart. "I'm very touched to see how beautiful the bond you two share is."

"You call it sweet," the red haired pervert of the group started in a soft mumble, a very familiar grin on her face. "Matsu calls it something else, hehehehehe." She finished with her perverted giggles.

"Is there something wrong with her?" Jenny whispered to Kagari, who was clearly creeped out by the laughs.

"Ah..." Uzume's face turned red at the light ribbing she was receiving from the two single digits. It was really quite endearing, seeing this other facet of the busty cloth user they had come to know and live with. Before they had rescued her Ashikabi from the clutches of the man with delusions of grandeur Higa, Uzume had only ever revealed her playful side. This new part of her personality was rather cute.

"Don't forget to make sure Chiho-baby drinks all of that nutrients shake I made for her," Dante reminded her in his own form of ribbing from where he sat on the other side of the table, eating at a much calmer pace than Musubi or Kusano. Chiho flushed lightly at his use of Uzume's pet name for her, while the Sekirei she had bonded began to choke on the air she had inhaled incorrectly, before she sent a glare at the teen that was completely ineffectual due to the large amount of red covering her face. "It's important that she drink all of shake before eating anything else, not only will they fill her up more, but due to what's in them they'll help make her bones and muscles grow stronger."

"Yeah, I know," Uzume huffed as she tried to regain control of her facial color. She couldn't quite seem to manage it, and her face seemed to retain a bit of redness no matter how hard she tried to calm herself. "You've only told me that a thousand times."

"And I'll tell you a thousand more if that's what it takes to make it sink in," he shot back. He had spent a lot of effort in healing the waifish girl from her disease, and he most certainly was not going to let all of his efforts go to waste by taking chances with her increasing health. "If you want Chiho to be capable of walking again, then she needs the nutrients in those shakes. All of them are very important in helping her regenerate the muscles she lost due to being bed ridden for so long."

"Speaking of," Uzume started as watched Chiho begin drinking down the nutrient shake. Thankfully the drink Dante had created tasted extremely good, otherwise there was no way the young Ashikabi would be capable of forcing all of the large drink down. "How long will it take before my Chiho will be able to walk again."

"I'm pretty sure Dante said next week was when the pyhsical therapy stars," Tobias answered almost immediately. This was not the first time Uzume had asked that question, and each time someone gave her an answer that was only slightly different due to the amount of time that had elapsed from each time she asked him.

"I've already got her exercises planned out, and as soon as her muscle mass gets to a certain point we'll be able get her started on walking around your room. Of course," Dante confirmed quickly at seeing the hopeful look on the pair's faces, "she won't be able to walk on her own yet. She's going to need you to help her keep her balance at first, but that shouldn't be too much of a problem."

Uzume nodded her head emphatically as she listened to Dante words. When he finished she turned to grace her Ashikabi with a heartfelt smile. "You hear that? It looks like we only have another week before you get to start walking again. You'll be up and at 'em in no time!"After giving her Sekirei a smile of her own, Chiho turned to look at Naruto. "Thank you very much for all the help you have given me and Uzume, Dante. We really appreciate everything you have done for us."

"Well, that's the type of guy his is." Jenny smiled, looking at Dante. "Can't say I'm surprised though, not after you traveled with..."

"Jenny," Tobias interrupted her in a warning tone, stopping her cold before she went on.

"With my dad." She laughed nervously, apparently aware she had come close to letting something slip. The atmosphere turned tense as everyone looked between Dante and Jenny, at least until Tobias interrupted.

"So, Dante. What plans do you have for today?"

"Glad you asked. Not much, cleaning, walking about, looking for a Sekirei who wants to kill me," Dante listed as he took a drink of tea.

"Another one!?" Tobias said incredulously. "How the heck do you get so many, and what do you mean she wants to kill you?"

"First off, I don't know, it's a mystery to me too. Secondly, she wants to kill me. She said so before I woke up this morning."

"You pissed off someone you haven't even met yet?" Jenny chuckled. "You are taking annoying to whole new levels Dante."

"Dante?" There was a tremor in Musubi's voice as she spoke up, surprisingly not with her mouth stuffed full of food. She was looking at her Ashikabi with wide eyes, and her lips were trembling slightly. He had no clue what was going on, but the look was startling in that he had never seen it from Musubi.

"Erm... yes?"

"Is another Sekirei really reacting to you?" That kind of question could have a number of different meanings depending on who asked them. It was very much akin to that 'are you telling me you slept with another woman' sort of question, the kind where if you answered in the affirmative it would mean a very painful ending for the male in question as every bone in his body was broken to the point where he needed to spend time in critical care at the hospital. It was a very ominous question, filled with numerous violent and painful possibilities. For a moment, looking at Musubi as she sat there, staring at him with wide eyes, Dante had to wonder just what her reaction would be.

He nodded, not knowing what to expect.

Honestly, he should have known better.

"That's great!" Dante did not know how, but somehow Musubi managed to dive over Kusano's head as the little girl continued to eat with out a care in the world from her still sitting position. The brunette had to have some serious leg muscles and dexterity to do something like that. She soared over the Green Girl and Dante once more found his face being smashed into the bountiful fullness that was Musubi's chest. "I can't believe Dante has another Sekirei reacting to him!"

Really, Dante knew he should not be surprised by this, he knew that. Musubi had proven time and time again that she was unlike anybody he had ever met, different even from her fellow Sekirei. She above everyone else would be more than ecstatic to hear that Dante had another Sekirei reacting to him. And yet, somehow, he was surprised at just how... exuberant she was acting from this knowledge.

"Can you describe her?" Matsu interrupted. "Matsu can run a search on Sekirei and see who's reacting to you."

"Sure. Blonde, my height, wearing some old fashioned clothes." He listed as Musubi let go of him and went back to her food.

"Such as?"

"A black dress with wide sleeves, a white underdress, long brown boots, black stockings, and a black choke with white frills around the neck."

Matsu almost chocked on the food in her mouth and Jenny patted on her back a few times. Coughing and with tears running down her cheeks slightly, she gasped out, "A-a-are you sure?"

"You know her?" Tobias asked.

Matsu nodded. "Miya, permission to leave the table please."

"Granted. This sounds important."

Matsu stood as did Dante, Jenny, and Tobias. The small group left the room, Dante stopping and said, "Don't wait up, just keep eating. I'll do the dishes."

They then proceeded upstairs, and into Matsu's room. Once they did, Matsu sat down and stated typing away rapidly, her system starting up as several files scrolled past the screens, all mugshots of people.

"Matsu has been making a list of Sekirei lately, a list of Sekirei's who have been winged, Unwinged, and their Ashikabi's. Dante's virus has been a great deal of help with that."

"Glad to provide some extra support. So, tell us what you know."

Matsu picked one file in particular and pulled up the picture in the entire screen.  
"Is this her?"

Dante looked over it closely before nodding.

"I was afraid of that." Matsu sighed. Dante's could tell she ws serious because she had stopped talking in third person. "This is Number 09, Tsukiumi. She's a water type Sekirei with absolute control over water, she can control and manipulate it with ease, and is even capable of generating it directly from her person."

"She's defiantly strong then." Tobias mused, crossing his arms. "My powers aren't the exact same, but I can do practically anything with air, provided I concentrate and work on developing them."

Jenny hhmm'd. "She's a really strong Sekirei. But why would she want to kill Dante if she's reacting?"

"Because she hates Ashikabi's," Once more attention was diverted to another member of Izumo Inn. As everyone looked at the red head, Matsu spoke, eyelids held halfway and her eyeballs roving around constantly as she accessed the MBI database . "She suffers from both agraphobia and androphobia. Known dream is to be the strongest Sekirei in the world without an Ashikabi to aid her."

Agraphobia, an abnormal fear of sexual abuse.

Androphobia, an abnormal and persistent fear of men.

As Dante listened to Matsu speak he was barely able to contain his grimace. He had known that Tsukiumi likely had some unresolved issues to deal with, the death threats had certainly told him that much, but he had not realized how bad the apparent issues were. How was he supposed to get through to someone when they had an irrational hatred of men?...

Or was it really irrational? It was well known to him by now that there were Ashikabi who would forcibly wing a Sekirei that was not reacting to them. Was it then, equally possible that perhaps some of the scientists who did the adjusting may have taken... extra liberties with the Sekirei undergoing adjustments in their care? It was possible, plausible even, Dante knew well the evils that men and women could commit upon each other. Yet somehow, despite what he knew about MBI, the blond shinobi was not sure if that was the case.

Minaka, despite his crazy ramblings about 'the Age of the Gods' didn't seem the type who would allow the people under him to take such liberties in relieving their sexual tension via using the Sekirei they were working on. Not when it could very well cause the man's plans to unravel before they began.

Perhaps she had heard stories about how vile men could be from other Sekirei, or even maybe the scientists working for MBI. Again, it was a plausible scenario, and something he wished he could look into before going out to search for Tsukiumi.

Of course, in the end all it and the other possible causes that could have attributed to the Sekirei in question having two phobia's that seemed to be anathema to her species were just that, plausible scenarios that may or may not be true.

"That's disgusting." Jenny growled when Dante spoke his thoughts out loud. "If that actually happened, I'm tracking those people down and seeing how they like to lack a certain something."

"Make it two." Tobias snarled, hands clenching. "Humanity has a lot of flaws, but if there is one thing I cannot fucking stand, it's rapists."

"Calm down you two, save the anger for later," Dante said. Getting both of them to calm down after taking some deep breaths. Dante studied the screen, thinking.

"I don't know if she'll want to be winged, but I think she should be tracked down and talked to. At the most, we can maybe convince her to come with us so she won't be winged forcibly."

"It won't be easy. This is a big city and she's one Sekirei. But I have been working on my Air Pulse lately. Range is 300 meets now, plus I can see shapes clearly now," Tobias thought. "I won't be much, but I can help narrow the search."

"No, I'm taking this one on alone. Matsu, can I see the keyboard?

After his Sekirei moved aside, Dante took over and started typing just as fast as Matsu, pulling up several diffrent windows that were scrolling data past.  
"You want to go after her alone?" Tobias sounded confused.

Dante nodded, not turning around. "If she's alone and in the city, you can bet she'll most likely be moving around quickly, looking for me to kill me. Also, she might be chased by other Sekirei. I'm going to need to be fast, travel light, and if need be, strike hard."

The screens popped up with several street views taken from over head, apparently cameras based on the words included with the feed.

"She's going to react violently if you show your face," Jenny warned. "If she is being chased when you find her, she'll assume you're after her too."  
"That's a chance I'll have to take, I just need to...got her!"

Dante moved one of the feeds to the main screen. It showed a street view, people going about their business up and down the street, but one person was running.

Tsukiumi to be precise.

The blonde was running down the street, slipping around people while glancing back and up. She had a clear scowl on her face as she leaped upwards, out of view of the camera.

"She's being chased. Matsu, keep me posted and let me know where she's going," Dante ordered, running from the room.

He had a Sekirei to save.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Tsukiumi cursed as she swiftly moved across the skyline of the metropolis that was Shinto Teito, her body nothing more than a blur to the people below, jumping from skyscraper to skyscraper in an attempt at losing her pursuers. Despite her speed, she could still feel the cretins that were chasing her in hot pursuit, and she just knew it was going to take a lot more than simply taking them on a merry chase to lose this particular group. Were it not for the fact that she was so busy trying not to get captured, she probably would have been swearing up a storm, something she couldn't afford to do as she didn't need to run out of breath.

This really wasn't her day, from the moment she had woken up to now things had been going downhill for her.

First she had woken up to that annoyingly pleasant tingle in her bosom; it felt as if butterflies were fluttering inside of her. It was nice, and warm, and she absolutely hated it. Knowing what this feeling was, what it meant for her ensured that she would get no pleasure in this feeling. Instead of enjoying the feeling and the knowledge it brought, it angered Tsukiumi. The knowledge that she was reacting to some monkey out there was a galling prospect, and not one she enjoyed. She would kill the fool that dared make her respond to them, if only so she could rid herself of this distracting heat.  
From there things had gotten progressively worst. She had run into those lightning strumpets, the fools had believed they could defeat her. Ha! As if. Even in her hot and bothered state, Tsukiumi was more than a match for them, a fact they had realized when they decided to run.

Cowards, the both of them. Not one to stand for such cowardly conduct, she had chased after the pair to teach them a lesson, and that was where she had made her first mistake. Not only had the lightning twins gotten away, but Tsukiumi had found herself in the southern part of Shinto Teito, not a good place for any unwinged Sekirei to be, as she soon discovered.

They had come for her out of nowhere, several Sekirei claiming they wanted to take her to see their master. It was very clear that their intentions were to kidnap her for their Ashikabi so that the vile ape who had winged them could sink his claws into her too. Well, Tsukiumi most certainly was not going to stand for that. She didn't need an Ashikabi; she would never allow those vile monkeys to lay their grubby and disgusting paws on her, especially not someone who was willing to forcefully wing her into submission.

Which of course had led to her starting a fight with those Sekirei foolish enough to follow their Ashikabi's orders. The water Sekirei had every intention of showing those pretentious little girls just why coming after her was a bad idea. She would show them the error of their ways by beating them in honorable combat, and once more Tsukiumi would prove to everyone that she was the strongest.

The battle itself had gone well enough, despite being outnumbered three to one Tsukiumi had given as good as she got. Better even. She had nearly managed to defeat one of them and the other two had also been on the receiving end of her water celebration enough times that they looked completely bedraggled. It would not have taken her much longer to defeat them she was sure. However, it had been during that moment, at the height of her victory where she had stood above her nearly defeated foes that things had gone south.

He had shown up; the Sekirei with the sword. He had appeared on the cusp of her victory and taken it away from her. His skills with the blade were more than a match for her talent at manipulating water. Everything she threw at him, he cut through with his sword. Nothing she did had been able to even touch him, and when he had finally began fighting back, Tsukiumi began to realize why.

That man was better than her, stronger than her; he wasn't just a single digit, but one of the original five.

Number 05, Mutsu, to be exact.

Even though it galled Tsukiumi to do so, she had beaten a hasty retreat. Pride aside, even she knew that she wasn't strong enough to defeat someone of that caliber just yet. And so, covering her escape with a high density wall of water that had blocked everyone's view of her, she had run. As galling as it was, her life was more important than her pride. She didn't know where she was running to, but that almost didn't matter so long as she got away from that man.

Of course, escaping from so many Sekirei and one of the original five was a difficult task in and of itself, perhaps even downright impossible. Within moments the group of Sekirei were once more upon her, and she had been fighting a running battle ever since. Now her clothing was frayed and tattered, her skin had several nicks from having one too may close encounters with that man's sword, and she was beginning to tire. However, she couldn't stop, not with the threat of impending winging was upon her. Tsukiumi did not want an Ashikabi, much less one that she was not reacting to. She just had to hope that her luck would hold out and allow her to escape these fiends before she found herself in a situation she couldn't escape from.

She ignored the small burning she felt coming from the base of her neck, as well as the light flutter in her chest.

"How much further Matsu?" Dante asked, spinning in the air before landing on a rooftop and sprinting down it.

Dante was currently roof running towards Tsukiumi, following Matsu's instructions on where to go. But not empty handed. Just before he had left, he'd ran to his room and grabbed a few things.

"You're about ten blocks away from her. Keep heading north," the red head said through his Bluetooth.

"How many Sekirei are after her and whose are they?"

"It's not easy to tell from the picture because of how fast they're moving, but it looks to be about three. We can't tell who they are though."

"That's the best we have. I'll be there in 20 minutes if they keep moving this fast." Dante flipped onto another roof top, going as fast as he could to reach them in time.

Her breathing was beginning to get ragged now. Cuts littered her body. Small trickles of blood seeped from the wounds. They were shallow, almost inconsequential. However, while the cuts themselves would normally mean very little to her, the sheer number of open wounds she'd had inflicted from Mutsu's sword were beginning to take their toll. Despite the damage that had been inflicted upon her person, Tsukiumi refused to stop. She couldn't, not when doing so meant being unwillingly winged by some disgusting ape that was league's beneath her.

It was too bad the people chasing her had no intention of letting this chase go on any longer. In a burst of inhuman speed, Mutsu appeared before her, his sword already raised high to slash her open from left shoulder to right hip. Tsukiumi swore even as she swerved to avoid the blow. She managed to dodge most of the attack, but still ended up receiving a light wound on her left shoulder as a result. Blood trickled down the new cut, a small line that had broken several layers of skin, but she ignored that for the moment, there were more important things to worry over. Of a much more immediate concern than one of the many wounds she had received, was the fact that Mutsu had forced her to slow down in order to dodge his attack, and she was now surrounded.

It was past midday now, the sun was still high, but had reached the halfway point and would begin its slow descent beyond the horizon soon. Dante didn't pay much attention to the time as he pushed himself forward, rushing towards the edge of the roof and leapt the incredible distance between the building he was on and the next one, and then the next one, and the one after that as he followed the feelings emanating from the fledgling bond.

He could feel her, the one known as Tsukiumi. Opening himself up further, Dante sought all the knowledge he could on the Water Sekirei's state. She was angry, tired, and most of all, frightened. Frightened at the knowledge that these Sekirei were after her, and if they caught her, she would be brought to their master so he could wing her against her will. She didn't want to be winged, not by this man, and especially not against her will.

However she was tired, oh so tired. The chase had taken its toll on her; her clothing ripped, her skin cut, she bled from numerous wounds and was now being forced to fight a battle that was not only three on one, but also involved someone who was far stronger than her. She knew that unless a miracle occurred, she would soon become the slave to some monkey who saw her as nothing more than toy.

Dante released a shuddering breath as he backed away from the emotions he felt coming from Tsukiumi, not only because of how intense they were, but because of what they were making him feel. Anger. White hot anger. Anger at the Sekirei attacking her, and anger at the man ordering them to do so. The man who would forcibly imprint himself on her when he was not her Ashikabi. He couldn't afford to feel those emotions, not right now anyways. Dante knew that he would need a clear head to plan a proper course of action, and he would need enough self-control not to act until he had gained enough knowledge on the situation to come up with that plan. This would not be another disaster like the one in the arboretum.

It wasn't that hard to track Tsukiumi down, all he had to do was follow the emotions from the still forming but not quite complete bond. He eventually found the woman in a back alley being surrounded by several Sekirei. Landing atop the nearest building in a crouch, Dante's eyes took in the group surrounding Tsukiumi. He recognized two of them right off the bat, Sekireis number thirty eight Mitsuha, and number thirty nine Mitsuki. Both of them had been at the arboretum when he had rescued Kusano. They were currently standing on opposite ends of each other, forming what looked to be a pincer movement with Tsukiumi stuck in between them. The other Sekirei Dante saw was male, and he also recognized him right off the bat.

Sekirei number 05, Mutsu.

Mutsu was quite tall, much taller than many of the other Sekirei that Dante had seen. He had messy silver colored hair, steel gray eyes, and was wearing a rather bored expression, like what they were doing was beneath him and he just wanted to finish up and go home. His outfit consisted of black pants and a long sleeved shirt of the same color. The shirt was open in the front, stopping just a few inches below his solar plexus, with crisscrossing bands of leather forming an 'X'. The sleeves near his shoulders had a single band around them of the same leather material. Sitting almost lazily on his waist was a belt that looked more like an accessory than an actually functioning belt. It sat slightly askew, the left side riding lower on his hip than the right, and the ends were tied together by a leather string. The only other distinguishing features about his clothing was the black fingerless gloves he was wearing, and the orange scarf he had wrapped around his neck and shoulders.

He was there when Dante rescued Akitsu, and Mutsu would surely recognize him if he showed his face, so he'd have to do this from a distance first.

Dante quickly pulled up his hoodie so most of his face would be in shadow before reaching behind him and grabbed the weapons he had brought with him. It looked like some sort of folded up bow, which he quickly brought out by jerking his arm forwards, making the bow snap into position.

"Thank you Hawkeye." Dante muttered as he looked over the bow. It was all black, with a molded handle that had three buttons on it, close to where his thumb went. On his back was a quiver full of arrows, all of them plain, but could be equipped for trick shots at the push of a button, making it a deadly and diverse weapon.

Dante clicked on of the buttons and the quiver hummed for a second before Dante drew an arrow and nocked it.

"Are you finally ready to give up?"

Dante's ears perked up as he heard the first words that had been spoken since he got there. He took his attention away from Tsukiumi and looked over at Mitsuki. Her weapon dangled at her sides, the many dozens of strings swaying slightly in time with her breathing. She looked so casual, confident of their victory.

He couldn't blame her. It was clear from where he stood that Tsukiumi had already lost. She was in terrible shape, and aside from a view scratches and some ripped clothing on their part, Mitsuha and Mitsuki were still in perfect fighting shape. If that weren't enough, Mutsu wasn't even injured; even his clothing looked completely unruffled. It would take a miracle for the water type Sekirei to pull out a win in this situation.

Fortunately for her, she wouldn't need to.

"Never!" Tsukiumi growled, and Dante's ears perked up. It was the first time he had heard her voice outside of his dreams. Dream Tsukiumi and this one sounded exactly the same, proud, willful, and unbending. There was only one difference. Where dream Tsukiumi had spoken with nothing but contempt, this one's tone was fearful. No doubt she was already dreading what would come if they managed to capture her. Yet, in spite of this, she did not back down. "I will never allow you to take me just so I can have some vile monkey violate me like he has done to you harpies!"

"Don't you dare insult our master like that!" Mitsuha shouted, her eyes glaring dangerously at the still defiant blond. She seemed to be angrier at the fact that Tsukiumi had insulted her master than being called a harpy. "Our master is an amazing master! You should consider yourself lucky he's even considered adding you to his collection!"

Dante wasn't sure which desire was more prevalent, the one that wanted to roll his eyes at the girls words, or the one that wanted to rush in and beat the girl for her words.

"Collection!?" It seemed Tsukiumi had no trouble expressing herself. The anger on her face was as clear as day. "I am not some... some thing that can be bought like a cheap painting, wench! I will not allow myself to be debased before the hairless ape you call a master!"

Both Mitsuha and Mitsuki looked rather furious at this. Mutsu on the other hand, was not giving away what he felt at all. The man had been standing there since this whole argument had started, his right hand holding his sheathed sword, his left hand lying at his side. He looked completely unruffled by this whole situation.

"Enough," he said, catching the attention of his two fuming compatriots before they could renew their argument with the blond. "We have a job to do, remember? We're to capture her for Mikogami. We don't have time to stick around here any longer."

"Right," Mitsuha said, preparing her whip for combat.

"Don't worry, we'll make this quick," Mitsuki spoke up as the dozens of tendril-like strings that comprised her weapon came to life. They moved and writhed, and soon were launched at Tsukiumi with incredible speed. The water-type made to dodge, she managed to sidestep the first string, and she managed to bend her torso out of the way of the second string, but that led her right into the path of the fifth, sixth, and seventh strings, which tied themselves tightly around her torso. Tsukiumi gasped as the strings tightened themselves around her. Her face flinched, and Dante could only figure they were aggravating the wounds along her torso.

With all the enemy Sekirei's focus on Tsukiumi, Dante knew it was his time to act. He lifted the bow and looked down the arrow, taking in account the wind speed and direction, then fired the arrow.

It hit the roof and embedded itself in it with a **_THUNK_**, making the fighters stop and look at it in surprise before Dante pushed a button.

**_BEEP, BEEP, PWEW!_**

The arrow exploded in a cloud of smoke, covering the area in an instant. Dante didn't hesitate and jumped across, diving into the cloud.

"What the hell is with this smoke?!"

While their vision hampered, Dante had experience moving in smoke and using his other senses to compensate. The black smoke enclosed on him from all sides, cloying and thick. Were it not for the fact that he was using his Timelord biology to filter his lungs of the acrid smoke, he would have no doubt started hacking up a lung. As things were, he could hear the others who had been caught within the smoke coughing as well. One, two, three...

Three?

Dante frowned. There were only three people coughing, two of them could be heard off to his left. They were close together, Mitsuha and Mitsuki, he was sure. The other one was directly in front of him, and judging from the feminine tone it could only be Tsukiumi. That meant the one who was missing was Mutsu. His frown deepened. Mutsu was the most dangerous of the Sekirei after Tsukiumi. He couldn't afford to have the number zero five after him as he made his escape, not with the limited amount of power he could bring out without alerting MBI to his own unique status.

Dante quickly tapped the Ultramatrix and activated it, letting him use his other power.  
"Eagle vision." He whispered. His eye sight shifted into something entirely new. Most things were colored a dull gray, except for four things. He spotted the twins, glowing red, standing side by side, a few feet away and coughing through the smoke. Tsukiumi, who was glowing blue, was a foot away from him, also coughing. And as he looked around, Dante spotted Mutsu standing on a roof top away from the smoke, keeping his distance and sight on the cloud.

Dante quickly equipped another arrow and fired it through the smoke. It burst out and flew towards Mutsu, who didn't look bothered as he raised his sword. As he did, Dante tripped the arrow, making it burst into wire.

"What the-?" Before he could get over his shock, Mutsu was wrapped up in wire and unable to move.

It took 5 seconds, and Dante used that time to cover the distance between Tsukiumi and himself to grab her hand and pulled her behind him as he ran.

"What the –!?"

"Just shut up and run!" Dante cut off the woman's surprised yell. He didn't even need his eagle vision to see the surprised expression on the female's face. Speaking of which, he should probably stop using his vision now that it had outlived its usefulness.

As the image of his surroundings faded from his mind's eye, Dante charged out of the smokescreen with Tsukiumi stumbling behind him. Without waiting for her to reply or even regain her bearings, he wrapped an arm around the girl's waist and jumped onto the roof adjacent from the one Mutsu was tied up on. He didn't look back as he began jumping from rooftop to rooftop; he needed to get to safety before Mutsu could break free from his wires. Dante estimated he had about four or five seconds before the Sekirei broke free, so he needed to be gone in that time.

Unfortunately he didn't take into account how Tsukiumi would react. During the first few seconds when he had enacted his smokescreen the water user had been understandably confused. What was going on? Was this another attack? A third party perhaps? Some kind of trick? Thoughts like that raged through her mind as she tried to come to terms with what was happening. When the smoke itself had engulfed the alley she, like the other two females, had been disoriented and focused more on trying to keep the smog out of her lungs than anything else. When Dante had grabbed her by the hand she had been startled, which had only increased when he began bodily dragging her out of the smokescreen.

Then he had picked her up under his arm like a sack of potatoes and started hopping across the rooftops. Tsukiumi had let it happen at the time because she was so surprised that someone dared to do something like this to her that she had not been able to respond. Now, however, Tsukiumi was aware of what was going on, that some male was carrying her across the roofs, and worse still he had a hood covering his face, like that mask on that blasted Homura. Needless to say, she was quite upset.

Scratch that, she was pissed.

"Water Celebration!"

"Gah!"

Dante really should have known better. Without warning Dante was smacked in the side of the head by a ball of compressed water. His grip on Tsukiumi loosened, allowing said water user to break free, while he stumbled sideways for several steps.

"You bastard!" Tsukiumi shouted, pointing at him in aggravation, "Who the hell do you think you are?!"

Dante took a moment to knock the side of his head to get the water out of his ear and off his hood, his head ringing.

"Well!? Are you going to answer me or not, bastard!?"

Dante looked at Tsukiumi, his eyes twitching as he found himself surprisingly annoyed. Maybe her feelings were bleeding over to him? Ripping the hoof off his head so he could speak without the cloth hampering his voice, the Timelord sent the woman an annoyed glared.

"I think I'm the one who just saved your life! So why don't you... e-eh?"

Dante found himself trailing off as he watched Tsukiumi's entire demeanor change. From the moment he had pulled down his hood, the water user's face had turned a deathly shade of pale, all except her cheeks, which were glowing a bright red. They looked even brighter against her now ghost white skin due to all the blood draining from her face with the exception of those areas. She almost looked sick. Her breathing had also picked up. Dante could hear her taking ragged gasps of air, like a pump that was being clogged. He could even see her, quite literally, trying to breath. Her shoulders and chest were heaving up and down with each heaving breath she took. It was quite distracting, as her bosom jiggled enticingly with each movement she made.

"U-Ugh..."

"H-Hey!"

Dante's eyes widened as he rushed over to the water user, who had just stumbled backwards for several steps before falling onto her backside. She had been forced to place her hands behind her and plant them firmly on the ground, locking her elbow joints together in order to use them to support her weight. Even then, her arms looked like they might give out at any second, that was how much they were shaking.

"S-Stay back!" Tsukiumi shouted at him, her voice sounding ragged. He also detected that she was both fearful and angry through the bond. "Don't come any closer!"

Dante stopped in his tracks, not really sure what he should do in this instance. Should he help her? Would she even accept his help? He was a man, and an Ashikabi. More importantly, he was her Ashikabi. It was obvious she was reacting to him, pretty violently as well. It wasn't as bad as Homura, but her reaction was worse than Musubi. The woman looked physically ill, and he could smell her arousal very clearly, a scent that was not unlike that of a fresh ocean breeze. Yet it was that very reason that he stayed his hand, she was well known for her hatred of Ashikabi and her irrational fear of men. With that in mind, it was probably best if he not make any sudden movements.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his body twitching as it fought against his new wellspring of instincts and emotions. "Do you need any help?"

"Shut up!" Tsukiumi shouted, her face turning another shade of red. If she kept this up they would need to find a new name for the color of her face. "I don't need your help! This... this is all your fault!"

"My fault?" Dante blinked. Well, he couldn't really blame her for that, could he? This was kind of his fault. At least the violent reaction was. At the same time, he had saved her from those Sekirei. Shouldn't she be a little more grateful. "How is this my fault? You would have been caught if I hadn't saved you."

"You..."

Tsukiumi tried for a growl, but it came out as more of a gasp.

"You...!"

Dante was most surprised when she managed to push herself off the ground. She stood on shaky legs, her knees buckling every few seconds. It looked like she might collapse at any moment.

"You!"

He was beginning to get a bad feeling about this. Tsukiumi's head was turned down, tilted towards the ground so that the upper half of her face was covered in shadows. Combine that with her bared teeth and the way her hair was swaying wildly about her body like a cluster of snakes and you had a pretty terrifying scene.

She raised a hand, and finally, her head snapped up, eyes narrowed in an expression of inexplicable anger.

"Die! Water Celebration!"

Dante's eyes snapped wide. A thousand thoughts went through his mind within a split second, possible choices he could make and their outcomes. He could block, his bow wasn't nearly large or strong enough to do so. He couldn't dodge, he had less then a second to move. So that left one viable option.

Take it.

Dante crossed his arms over his chest as the water hit, sending him flying back at high speed, the wind forcing his hood up again. He then collided painfully with the wall behind him, making a crater in it as he coughed up blood. He was able to see Tsukiumi looking horrified at him and guessed she had reacted out of instinct to simply get him away from her, not try and, to her perception, kill him, since any normal human would've have their spine snapped from the force. Thankfully his body was much tougher, so all he would really have was some really nasty bruises on his back.

Dante let himself slump to the ground, his head hanging down and his bow at his side on the ground. He had a feeling the other Sekirei were close.

As if to confirm his thoughts, Mutsu and the two other Sekirei of Mikogami's, Mitsuha and Mitsuki, alighted upon the roof. The sword wielder took in the scene before him, his eyes straying from Tsukiumi to the still limp Dante. He seemed to come to his own conclusions, and discarded the teen out of hand due to the injuries he had suffered. Beside him, Mitsuha launched her strings at Tsukiumi. They wrapped around the water user, whose reactions were slowed by the shock she was undoubtedly still feeling. It was only a second after the strings had been tightly wound around her frame that she began to struggle.

"How dare you, you fiend!" she snarled at the pony-tailed Sekirei. Her arms were bound so she could not lift them, but she did manage to lift her left hand and point it at Mitsuha.

"Water Cele – GYAH!" Her words were cut off, her attack halted, as the whip in Mitsuki's hand lashed out and caught Tsukiumi across her right cheek. The attack was surprisingly strong, strong enough to not only throw the blond Sekirei off her feet and onto the ground, but also open up a gash across her cheek, which began to flow freely with blood.

"Now, now," Mitsuki chided with an almost manacle grin. "We can't have you attacking us anymore. You've already given us enough trouble as it is. Just be a good little Sekirei and let us take you to our master."

"Bastards!" Tsukiumi cursed them.

Dante slowly let his hand creep to his bow, the others too busy to notice as he slowly grabbed it.

Mutsu sighed.

"We've wasted enough time here."

Dante wondered what he should do. He needed a plan if he wanted to get out of this without revealing too much of his skills.

"Keep her bound so she can't get away. It's bothersome, but we don't want her trying to escape again."

Unfortunately he couldn't think of anything. So long as Tsukiumi remained bound and Mutsu remained near. When he had been fighting Ichiya, Dante had been able to fight with just some minor reinforcement. Those two had been skilled, and strong, and they worked well as a team, but their abilities simply hadn't been able to match his experience.

Mutsu was on a whole different level. As one of the first five Sekirei awakened, his power was comparable to that of a winged Sekireis while they were using their Norito. Stronger even, if Dante listened to Matsu. He wouldn't be able to escape from this without using more power.

How annoying.

He then clicked one of the buttons on the bow before the quiver hummed for a second and stopped.

"You whore!" Tsukiumi shouted as she continued to struggle on the ground. She writhed and jerked and flopped as she tried to use what strength she had left to free herself. It was rather pointless, the fight and flight had taken away most of her strength, and her reaction to Dante had zapped what little was left, but that didn't stop her from trying. "I demand you unhand me this instant!"

"Whore!?" Mitsuha's left eyebrow gained a violent twitch. "Who are you calling a whore, you stupid bitch! I'll teach you!"

"Enough!" Mutsu commanded in a demanding voice. It was a testament to just how powerful one of the first five Sekirei were that both Mitsuha and Tsukiumi stopped what they were doing. "Mitsuha, don't let you her get to you. She might be trying to rile you up so she can free herself."

"Besides, Mikogami wants us to bring her to him in one piece." The Sekirei he was scolding looked down at the floor contritely. Mutsu nodded, satisfied. Neither he nor the others saw Dante as the long living Timelord prepared to attack.

Slowly he started to get up, not wanting to warn them of his still conscious presence. Dante then pulled out the arrow before setting the notch on the string, pulled back and let the arrow loose. The projectile hit it's mark, causing the Sekirei to turn their heads all with a surprised look on their faces. Dante wondered if it was because the 'corpse' from earlier had suddenly risen up and shot an arrow.

"What the hell!?" Mitsuha shouted in shock. "I thought he was dead!"

Her surprised shouting went largely ignored. Mitsuki and Tsukiumi were both in the same boat as she was, but they seemed to have lost their voices, though Dante was sure if they had them they would have agreed with the Sekireis assessment. The only one who wasn't affected to the point of not being able to move was Mutsu, who had launched himself at Dante the moment he shot off through the strings that had bound Tsukiumi.

Dante then pressed the button, once for the arrow he had fired. It beeped before a small and controlled explosion happened, breaking the strings effortlessly.

He heard a soft **_SNIKK_** behind him and spun on a dime. Mutsu slashed at Dante who blocked the attack with the outer edge of his bow. The two were stuck in a standstill for a second before Dante twisted, making the sword slide of his bow as he swung it around, aiming for Mutsu's head. He blocked with his sword again, giving Dante the opening to roundhouse kick him in the ribs. Not wanting to get into combat yet though, Dante then jumped back, spinning and blasting off. Before the other two Sekirei could stop him, he had grabbed Tsukiumi and gotten them both on the other side of the building.

"You..." Out of the corner of his eyes Dante saw Tsukiumi staring at him in shock. The initial issues with her reacting seemed to have simmered some, though now that he was next to the water user her blush had returned. "How are you still alive? I thought I had..." she trailed off, her head turning away. Through the bond, Dante felt her shame. It was clear that even if she hated men, she had no desire to kill them.

Thank Rassilon for small miracles.

"Killed me? It'd take more than a wall to even wound me." Dante said as he set down Tsukiumi and eyed the three enemy Sekirei as they regrouped. They were probably going to try and come up with a plan of attack. He would need to go on the offensive before they could do so. "Can you stand?"

Tsukiumi blinked, as if she had not quite heard or registered his words. After a minute or two she placed her hands under her body, and lifted herself off the ground. In spite of the numerous wounds, her slight wobbling, and her body reacting to him, the blond Sekirei somehow managed to give him a haughty look. "Of course I can. Who do you think you're talking to?"

Dante raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment on her words. "Good, then listen closely. I'm going to attack those three. When I do, I want you to get as far away from here as possible. I'll try to keep them occupied as long as possible, but you'll have to be quick, as I don't know how long I can hold them off."

"Get away?" Tsukiumi blinked. "You expect me to flee!?" Her surprise turned into anger as she glared at him. "I will not run from honorable combat! Only a coward would run away when faced with battle!"

Dante raised an eyebrow. "Then what were you doing before I bumped into you?"

"T-That was different!" Tsukiumi's face turned red as she defended herself. "That was not honorable combat! Those bastards ambushed me in a cowardly attack and worked together to gang up on me! If I had faced them one on one the loss would have been theirs!"

He probably would have argued that point with her since Mutsu was with them, but noticed that the three looked like they had come up with a plan on action and were preparing to execute it. The time for talk was over. If she couldn't be swayed, he would have to see if she would work with him.

"Do you think you can still fight then?" he asked, not taking his eyes off the enemy trio as they moved in to attack. Mitsuha and Mitsuki were moving around him on either side, no doubt in the hopes of bypassing him so they could attack Tsukiumi directly. Meanwhile, Mutsu was coming straight at him in a frontal assault. Dante could see their plan easily, and had to admit it was sound. Without knowing his strength, they couldn't afford to attack him with anything less than full strength. At the same time, it would be unwise to leave Tsukiumi to her own devices. By attacking him with their strongest Sekirei, Dante would be to preoccupied to defend the weakened Tsukiumi, who would be taken down by the still relatively fresh Mitsuha and Mitsuki.

It looked like he was going to have to show them how badly they had underestimated him.

"O-Of course I can still fight!" Tsukiumi looked away from him, her face stained with another blush. "I am the strongest after all."

Dante raised an eyebrow, but didn't bother to contradict her. Now wasn't the time. "Then prove it. Here they come."

Tsukiumi looked like she was going to say something, but in that moment Dante burst forward to cross his bowwith Mutsu as Mitsuha and Mitsuki attacked her with their whip and strings respectively. She managed to jump back, dodging the whip and several of Mitsuki's strings, but a few managed to catch her unawares and managed to make small nicks in her flesh. She hissed, but despite how tired she must be from everything that had happened, managed to pull enough strength from somewhere to raise her hand and point it at them.

"Water Celebration!"

It was only out of the corner of his eyes that Dante saw the water attack nearly connecting with Mitsuki. Even than he couldn't pay what was happening with Tsukiumi more than a passing glance as he focused most of his attention on Mutsu. A bow, even a reinforced one, was only so good against a sword.

As a result, Dante was mostly dancing around Mutsu's strikes while delivering stinging blows of his own.

Mutsu slash diagonally at his head, making Dante lean back while dilvering a backwards kick. The sword wielding Sekirei jumped back to dodge it before charging again, slashing at Dante. He went into a hand stand and flipped a few times to get some distance before stopping, nocking an arrow and firing. Mutsu knocked it aside easily, but it gave Dante time to get in close and swing him bow upwards, hitting him in the chin and snapping his head back. Not letting up, Dante delivered a punch to the kidneys, ribs, then a kick to the stomach to send the Sekirei back. He stopped and whipped his mouth, looking at it to see no blood before giving Dante his attention again.

"You, what are you?" asked Mutsu, his eyes narrowing slightly as he looked at the teen, his face mostly in shadow from the hoodie. "You're far too strong to be human, yet I can sense that you're not a Sekirei."

"Who knows?" Dante said with a projected air of indifference. "Sometimes I wonder about that myself." Despite the seemingly nonchalant attitude he was trying to pull off, he was getting worried. He had split attention between keeping an eye on Mutsu, and checking in on Tsukiumi. The water user was not doing very well. She had several more cuts marring her skin, and her movements were getting more sluggish by the minute. Were she fighting at full strength, she might have been able to defeat the two, but as things stood she wouldn't last much longer. He needed to get to Tsukiumi before she lost.

Mutsu's brow furrowed, then his eyes widened. "An Ashikabi? Impossible!"

Dante just chuckled. "Nothing is impossible. Just improbable."

The surprise that had registered on number zero five's face was all Dante needed to make his move. He grabbed three arrows and fired them off, one after another quickly.

It took time to block them all and Dante had already started to move. He ran forwards and as Mutsu slashed at him, Dante slid like a runner into home, going between his legs. Dante spun and knocked Mutsu's legs out. He landed on his hands and Dante jumped up using his legs, heading for Mutsu's back. Sensing his opponent, Mutsu rolled to the side, dodging Dante's feet which cracked the roof slightly.

Mutsu took the opening. He pushed off the ground, sending him spinning towards Dante with his sword out. Dante leaned back just enough the blade missed him, but the flat of the blade caught his hood and forced it back, showing his face.

Mutsu got his footing back and glared at his oppentent for a second before he got a good look. Then his eyes went wide.

"You!"

Dante smirked as he pushed the button again. "Surprise!"

He then grabbed the arrow, spun it a few times before grabbing it with he head facing downwards. He knelt and slammed it to the ground, resulting in a bright flash of light and a loud **_BANG_**.

Mutsu, not expecting the flash-bang arrow, was temporarily blinded. He would be fine in a few seconds, but Dante wasn't interested in him anymore.

He used the distraction to turn and run towards Tsukiumi and her fight, both twins turning to see what the sound was. They spotted him and Mitsuha sent her whip at him.

Using speed and precision previously unseen, Dante stopped dead, pulled an arrow, nocked it, then fired.

The arrow hit the tip of the whip and slowly sliced through it. It went down the entire length of the whip, splitting it in two until it reached the Sekirei. Her eyes were slowly widening and she tried to jump away, but was too slow. The arrow hit her chest and sunk in up to half shaft.

Mitsuha looked at the arrow in shock as she landed, then back at Dante, who's face was cold and emotionless. Her eyes then rolled into the back of her head and she collapsed on her side, her back glowing as her Sekirei crest dissolved. A second later, a small trickle of blood dampened her shirt and creeped along the shaft before dripping steadily.

A profound silence rang throughout the rooftop as the three remaining Sekirei stared wide eyed at the teen who had just defeated and possibly killed a member of their race. Mitsuki's face turned green as she stared at him like he was some kind of monster. And with the bow at his side and the cold look in his eyes as he turned his head to glare at her, she really belived he was a monster.

Mutsu was the first of the group to recover. He looked over at Mitsuki, who looked like she might vomit at any moment. "Mitsuki!" he shouted, forcing her to look away from the gruesome scene before her. "This battle's lost, we're leaving." The user of the strange string-like weapons didn't need to be told twice. Shuddering from head to toe at what could have been her fate had she been closest to the teen; she jumped off the building and onto an adjacent one.

Dante watched them go. He could have gone after them, but really, all he wanted to do now was get home. The day had gone on far longer than he had expected and while he wasn't very tired, the idea of getting back to Izumo Inn where a warm meal and his Sekirei waited for him was a very pleasant thought.

Then he looked out of the corner of his eyes and saw Tsukiumi staring at him with a strange expression, a mixture of abject horror and arousal that would have looked out of place on anyone. He turned to face her, noticing how she flinched when he saw him. Dante sighed and noticed a slightly warm feeling on his right side. He touched it and pulled his fingers away to see a hint of red.

"Hhmm. Blade must've just nicked me," Dante mused out loud. He looked back up at Tsukiumi, and was tempted to take a step forward, but remembering the last time he had done that decided it would be best to stay where he was.

"Are you alright?" he asked into the silence. Tsukiumi seemed to shake herself out of whatever funk she was in, and gingerly stood up, wincing a bit as the aches and pains of the day, as well as the way her body was reacting to Dante, descended upon her.

"I am fine." She lied to him. Dante didn't call her out on it, instead choosing to watch as the water user looked from him, to the peirced Sekirei behind him. Her eyes focused on him again, and then she blushed. She opened her mouth as if to say something, then just as quickly closed it. Dante watched as she did this several times, before giving a sigh.

"Well, if you're alright then I suppose I should be going." Dante sighed, folding up his bow before slinging it over his shoulder, turning to leave. He didn't like leaving her, but she had made it very clear she didn't want to be winged. He wouldn't force her. He wasn't Higa. Or Mikogami. At the most, he would ask Kagari to keep an eye on her, to make sure she was ok.

He turned around, preparing to leave, but a stuttered shout of "W-w-w-wait!" had him stop. Turning his head, he looked over at Tsukiumi, whose hand was outstretched towards him as if to grab his clothing, and her face was a mixture of agitation and indignation.

"Is that it!?" She demanded to know. Dante, who had no idea what she was talking about blinked.

"Excuse me?"

"You just come in and interfere with my battle, you make me feel all these strange feelings, and now you're just going to leave!"

Dante scratched the back of his head. He wasn't sure what to say so he decided to say nothing and just let the blond female continue her rant.

"No, I refuse to let you do that! You have interfered in my and therefore you have to... have to..." Tsukiumi had started strong, but as her rant continued she began to lower her voice until it was barely above a whisper. She seemed to trail off completely, and Dante wasn't sure if she would speak. Just when he was about to ask for clarification, she continued in a voice so quiet that Dante almost missed it. "You have to take responsibility for me."

"Eh?" Dante blinked, once, twice, thrice. Then his eyes widened. "Take care of you?"

Surely she couldn't mean...

"O-Of course!" Tsukiumi tried to scowl, but with how embarrassed she obviously was the look wasn't very effective. "It's only right that you take responsibility for me. You're the one who's been making me feel so strangely this past week. Had it not been for you those cowards who attacked me would have never survived!"

Dante opened his mouth, and then closed it. He opened it again, only to close it one more time. The process was repeated another three times before he managed to find his voice.

"B-But I thought you didn't want an Ashikabi." That's what her profile had said at least. She despised Ashikabi with a passion, and wanted to prove that she was the strongest Sekirei even without one. To top it off she was agoraphobic, and when one took into account that most Sekirei/Ashikabi relationships seemed to be male/female with the exception of his partnership with Homura and Chiho's relationship with Uzume, that only compounded on the problem. Why would she want him to wing her when she had such a powerful fear and hatred of men?

"D-Do not take this the wrong way," Tsukiumi stuttered. She tilted her head down to look at the ground. "W-we are... r-r-reacting. I... it's only right for you to take responsibility for your actions!"

The change in her entire disposition surprised Dante more than he cared to admit. Just a little while ago she had been ready to kill him... well, she had at least tried to seriously hurt him. But now she was acting all shy, her head was tilted towards the ground, yet her eyes were looking up at him through her blond bangs. There was a prominent blush on her cheeks. She looked incredibly... vulnerable, he would have to say. She was acting disturbingly shy. To be honest, it was really quite cute. Dante wasn't quite sure, but he could swear he had seen this kind of emotional shift before. It was almost like she... she...

No. It couldn't be? It wasn't possible was it? Nothing in her profile mentioned this?

Tsukiumi was supposed to be an extreme man-hater, someone whose agoraphobia made her despise Ashikabis. It shouldn't be possible that she was...

Dante looked at her again, more closely this time, and came to the startling conclusion that the MBI profiles were dead wrong, and whoever had made them needed to be stabbed with a rusty knife. There was no mistaking the look, those large blue eyes, hidden behind her bangs as she looked at him; that rosy flush on her creamy pale cheeks. She was even poking her damn fingers together! That settled it. There was simply no way she could anything else.

"I can't believe it..." Dante groaned as he covered his face with his hands. He felt like hitting his head against a wall. After a second of lamenting the absolutely poor intelligence MBI had given him, he removed the finger covering his right eye to look at Tsukiumi. She was angry again; no longer blushing, her staring at him shyly, or poking her fingers together. Instead her face was red with anger, her eyes were glaring at him, and her fists were clenched at her sides.

"What is your problem?!" She shouted, pointing an accusing finger at him. "Here I am... o-off-," her face flushed red, the hand with the quivering finger dropped to her side, and she looked back down at the concrete roofing, "-offering myself to you!" She squeaked out, her face flush with equal amounts of anger and embarrassment. "And you are not even willing to take responsibility of me! What kind of Ashikabi are you!?"

That settled it. This Sekirei was not Agraphobic or Andraphobic. She didn't hate men and she most definitely was not afraid of sex.

She was Tsundere, pure and simple. How MBI could screw up so royally that they would mistake a Tsundere for someone with an abnormal fear of men and sexual abuse he would never know. They were in Japan for Galifrey's sake! The land whose pop culture had created the term to describe a female that acted cold and hostile on the outside, yet contained a soft and gentle persona that she hid from the world on inside. No one who lived in Japan should be capable of mistaking a Tsundere for anything but what they were. Was the adjustor some kind of idiot? Someone who was romantically retarded maybe? Whatever the case was, if Dante ever found them they were dead. He was going to kill them, slowly and painfully. The amount of trouble he had just been through could have been mostly avoided if he had known what he was dealing with right from the start.

"Well?!"

Dante jerked his head back in surprise when the loud voice of Tsukiumi shouted at him. He blinked, then focused on the now 'tsuning' Sekirei before him. She glared at him with stained cheeks puffed out in anger.

"Are you going to take responsibility for me or not!?"

"Ah," Dante absently noted that he sounded almost like Akitsu as he paused for a second, his mind blanking as he tried to screw his head on properly. It wasn't that he didn't know his answer, because as far as he was concerned there was only one answer he could give. But he was still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that all of his information on the Sekirei that had been reacting to him and threatening to kill him for nearly a week was wrong.

"Sorry. Of course I'll take responsibility for you." He gave the female what he hoped was a warm smile. The act of giving a smile that wasn't fake was still difficult for him at times. Thankfully it seemed his fears were unfounded, as Tsukiumi took one look at him, and then flushed bright red. She looked down, taking a great interest in her shoes, or at least she seemed to. Her eyes would look up at him every now and then, before going back to the ground.

Dante took several steps forward, coming to a stop directly in front of Tsukiumi. Her face flushed red, and her eyes diverted themselves completely from him to the ground. That wouldn't do. He placed a hand under her chin, and she didn't stop him as he tilted her head up, though the redness staining her cheeks spread from the roots of her hair down to her neck. Even the top of her cleavage had turned red from the amount of blood being pumped to her face.

He looked her in the eyes. They were incredibly vulnerable right now. Tsukiumi bit her lower lip, which only seemed to increase the look of a 'dering' Tsundere. It was undeniably endearing. Most men would have died of moe by now. Even he was beginning to get affected by the sheer adorable sexiness the woman possessed. His heart was pumping blood far faster than necessary, faster even than when he had been fighting against Mutsu. He could feel his own cheeks heating up. Dante was quite sure that his face was probably as red as Tsukiumi's.

How any grown woman could look so incredibly cute and yet so sexy at the same time was beyond him.

There was a moment's hesitation as Dante wondered whether or not he should make the next move or leave it to her. She was a Tsundere after all, and he didn't want to be on the receiving end of her 'tsun tsun' side. Granted, it was almost a foregone conclusion that he probably would be at some point in time, but he'd already had enough to deal with today that he didn't want to add another moment of senseless 'tsuning' violence.

The decision was taken out of his hand when Tsukiumi seemed to lose all strength in her legs. Her eyes rolled up in the back of her head as she pitched forward, her face falling directly into his chest. Dante's arms wrapped around her out of instinct, even as his mind tried to catch up with what was happening. He looked down at the now unconscious water user.

His left eye began to twitch.

"Are you fucking kidding me!?"

His Bluetooth rung then and he tapped it, demanding, "What!?"

There was silence for a second, presumably the person on the other side surprised at the outburst. Then Tobias's amused voice said, "So, MBI screwed up didn't they?"

"Shut up!"

Tobias chuckled over the line. "Nice fight. Matsu got the whole thing on tape. You really know how to pick them."

"You say one more word, and I will introduce your rear end to an arrow." Dante snarled.

"So rude. Look up."

Dante did and spotted Tobias smirking, holding a cellphone twenty feet above. The teen slowly lowered to the roof top, hanging up the phone as he did so. "And here I came to help bring you home."

Dante was not feeling generous and simply grunted. Tobias just kept smirking as he look around and spotted Mitsuha. He nodded at her.

"What about her?"

Dante looked at the fallen Sekirei. There was now a tiny pool of blood next to her.

"MBI will pick her up. Though they'll get quite a suprise once they're done fixing her up."

Tobias stared at her for a second before shaking his head, his teasing mood gone. Seeing death, even an enemy one, was never something to laugh about.

"Shall we?"

"Let's."

Tobias grabbed Dante's arm and concentrated. The three of them lifted up on a platform of air and Tobias carried them away, back towards the inn.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Dante and Tobias set down just outside the fence to Izumo Inn and started walking up the drive. The door opened before they could knock to show Miya.

"Welcome home, Dante, Tobias," Miya said, her eyes crinkling as she smiled pleasantly at the pair. It was a smile that belied the true terror hidden behind that veneer of beauty and gentleness. Fortunately none of it seemed to be directed at them for the moment, though Dante could sense the woman was just waiting for the right time to unleash her terror upon him. He decided to count his blessings. "I heard you ran into an old acquaintance of mine."

Dante shook off the way the air around Miya seemed to darken at the mentioning of her 'acquaintance', though Tobias seemed slightly nervous. It seemed there was bad blood between her and Mutsu. Not surprising. He knew very little about Miya's past, but even with the limited amount of knowledge he possessed, he knew the two were well accuaniqented and hadn't parted on the best of terms.

"Yeah," Dante replied slowly, wondering if perhaps she was about to unleash her hanya mask. He didn't think so, since the male who seemed to have earned her ire wasn't here, but one can always hope. "I ran into Mutsu while he and two other bloodhounds under Mikogami's command were chasing an Unwinged Sekirei."

"This is her I take it?"

Miya gestured towards Tsukiumi, still passed out and snuggled against him, with her broom. How the woman had been able to sleep so comfortably against him when he was extremely muscled was beyond him. Then again, maybe it had something to do with the way she had buried her nose into his neck. Even now he could feel the flesh of her nose nuzzling against his skin.

"Goodness, it looks like someone decided to give her several hundred paper cuts or something."

Dante was sure that if Miya were not holding her broom in both hands, she would have been using one of them to cover her mouth in an attempt to act like a demure and proper housewife.

"An accurate description," Dante said, "only instead of paper he used a sword. Mutsu's blade was pretty sharp. And he's quite skilled in using it," Dante added almost as an after thought. While he may have been upset by what had happened, the long time fighter couldn't help but admire the number zero five's skills with a blade. He was not in Miya's realm of ungodly talent ― from what he had seen so far of the woman ― but it would not be inaccurate to say that the male Sekirei was just below Dante himself. At least as far as raw skills with a blade went. Strength and strategy wise, they were worlds apart.

"Oh my," Miya said, the blackness that had descended upon her like a cloak vanishing upon hearing his words. Her eyes cracked open, revealing her purple irises to him. They studied him with the same intensity they usually did when Dante did something that she had not been expecting. "From the way said that it sounds as if you actually fought him." There was a question in her words, even though the way she had phrased it made her sentence sound like a statement. Dante knew better though.

"He did." Tobias added helpfully. "Matsu said she recorded the entire thing. Not bad from what I saw."

Miya spared him a glance before looking back to Dante in concern.

"Are you alright?" asked Miya, and Dante blinked when the woman began checking him over for any signs of injury. She wouldn't find any, aside from the fact that all of his injuries had been external via being a crash test dummy, but they were on his back and they had already healed by now. After a few seconds of trying to see if he had any injuries she leaned back with a frown. "You don't look like you have any injuries," she muttered. "But what is that bow?"

Dante looked over his shoulder. "This? A gift from a friend of mine. It was what I used to beat off those vultures."

Miya's eyes widened just slightly. "You fought Mutsu with a bow and arrows?"  
Dante smirked. "Never underestimate a resourceful foe. It wasn't easy, but I beat him. Now, if you'll excuse me, Tsukiumi needs her wounds dressed and I want to take a bath."

Before Dante could get to far, a hand shot out behind him and grabbed onto his shoulder, halting him in place. And then it happened. A slow darkness began to descend upon the world around him. The endless black was stifling as it choked the life out of everything, Dante could swear he actually saw the grass on either side of the sidewalk wilting right before his eyes. It was as if the dark aura that had suddenly rushed into the clearing was sucking the life out of all the plants nearby. Tobias wisely took that as his cue to leave and leaped over the building with his air powers into the courtyard, leaving Dante alone.

Dante knew he shouldn't turn around. He knew it, but he couldn't help it. The desire was too strong. Slowly, his neck craned around so that he could get an eye full of the woman behind him. Miya was smiling at him, her eyes crinkling in a pleasant expression that was borderline terrifying. The shadows cast by her bangs hung over the upper half of her face, almost, but not quite, concealing her eyes made the look all the more horrifying.

The black aura that seemed to emanate death was coming from her, Dante noted. Wisps of acrid black energy seemed to waft off her frame like smoke. But rather than dissipate into the air like smoke, this wispy aura hung around her, gathering and cloaking her like some kind of unholy veil created by the devil himself, and her hair seemed to be swaying around in an unsteady breeze that was brought on, not by nature, but by the black tendrils of leaking, malignant energy.

Sadly her hanya mask didn't come out. She didn't use it around him anymore, not since he broke it last time. Shame, he liked seeing, if just because it was interesting.

"Dan-te," Miya replied slowly, haltingly, enunciating each syllable to his name very clearly, and not in the way he was used to most women doing. Dante shivered at the tone in her voice, an instinctive fear that all men have towards women using that tone no matter how many years they lived coming to the foreground. "You are covered in dust and stone fragments, and I will not let you track that through my newly cleaned house."

"So you're just going to have me stand out here?" asked Dante blandly, raising a single eyebrow to look at the woman curiously. For some reason, the way Miya's smile widened made Dante think he would have been better off not saying anything at all.

"You know," Dante began in a conversational tone in spite of the fact that he was being blasted with freezing cold water by what felt like those hoses used by the fire department. "Out of all the Sekirei I've meet, you are the last one I would have expected to volunteer to spray me down. Isn't water, like, anathema to you or something?"

"Shut up, Dante!" Kagari scowled as he continued hosing the teen down with the cold water. It seemed he was still a bit upset by what had happened. "I don't want to hear any smart ass comments from you! Not after what you did! Do you know how worried we were about you when Matsu called in and told us you had left to go after number 09!? And then we had to find out from her that you had also gotten in a fight with the number zero five of all Sekirei! What the hell were you thinking!?"

"I agree with him Dante, this was a new level of recklessness, even for you." Jenny frowned from the porch.

"Yes but still not on the same level as my mentor, your father's, recklessness when those incidences happened." Dante shot back, turning around in the spray of water. Miya's brilliant plan for him had been to walk around back and get sprayed with the garden hose Kagari was currently using. He wasn't sure why she would insist on it, since it was his clothes covered in dust, but he had a feeling it was payback for something he had done at one point.

"Those are in no way relevant to this." Jenny denied, though she did seem to have the lightest of blushes on her face.

"What is in no way relevant?" Uzume asked, coming out with Chiho on her back. As the waifish Ashikabi still didn't have the leg strength necessary to walk on her own for prolonged periods of time, she was being carried by Uzume, much to her embarrassment. The girl had actually been offered a wheelchair, but Uzume had put her foot down saying she was going to carry her Ashikabi and no one could convince her otherwise. Personally, Dante thought she was being so adamant on having her Ashikabi ride piggy back on her so she could cop of feel without rousing Miya's suspicion.

"What's going on here ― woah!"

Uzume found herself gawking when she saw Dante in nothing but his boxers while being sprayed with a water hose by Kagari. She was understandably shocked because due to decades of fighting and training, he had lean yet firm muscles all over his body, as well as several small scars everywhere, but they were currently hidden by the water. The busty brunette wearing her traditional star shirt and tight fitting jeans blinked several times as she eyed him up and down before a salacious grin replaced the surprised expression on her face.  
"Not bad, bro," she complimented with a whistle. "You've got some serious muscles going there. If I didn't already have an Ashikabi, I may have ended up picking you. What do you think, Chiho-baby? Chiho?"

When Chiho didn't respond, Uzume turned her head in confusion.

"Chiho, I was asking what you... oh..." Uzume trailed off when she saw her Ashikabi staring at the young (looking) teen with very prominent blush staining her cheeks. They looked like two large sunspots that she had gotten from staying out in the sun for far too long. And was that drool coming out of her mouth?

Uzume began to pout.

"How come you never stare at me like that?"

"Eh?" Chiho blinked several times before her mind actually seemed to register what her Sekirei said. Once she did, however, the red dots on her cheeks began to spread until her entire face looked like a boiled over lobster. "I-It's not like that!"

"Don't worry, I know when I'm being replaced," Uzume fake sniffed. "It seems my eternal love for you can't match up with Dante's hot bod. I understand."

"U-Uzume!"

"What's all this noise about?" asked Miya as she too appeared. Or at least, made it look like she randomly happened upon the scene. Dante knew better. The purple haired landlady had been waiting just inside one of the shogi screen doors, eavesdropping on Kagari's angry ranting long before Uzume had ever shown up.

Honestly, Miya was as bad as Matsu when it came to peeping in on other people's conversations.

"Gah!"

"Kya!"

The two females standing on the porch whirled around. Well, Uzume whirled around. Chiho was currently on Uzume's back so she was just taken a long for the ride. It was actually pretty funny, watching Uzume as she spun around, nearly tripping over her own two feet, her arms flailing in the air as she tried to regain her balance while Chiho was screaming loudly as her arms tightened their grip around her Sekirei's neck.

Of course, it would have been bad if they actually had fallen. Who knows how badly Chiho might have been injured, but thankfully, the large breasts brunette was able to keep herself from toppling over. She still looked like she was about to have a heart attack though.

"Dammit, Miya!" Uzume swore as she clutched a hand to her breast, the effect of which really just served to emphasis the large chest she was sporting. "You scared the shit out of me ― ouch!"

Uzume's startled rant came to an abrupt end when Miya smacked the poor Sekirei with the handle of her broom. The brunette Sekirei instinctively reached for her head, only for Chiho to begin slipping, forcing the girl to tighten her hold on Uzume, unintentionally choking the woman she had bonded to.

"Swearing is not allowed within Izumo Inn," Miya chided lightly, the handle of her broom moving back and forth like a pendulum. A very threatening pendulum.

"Heheheheh," Uzume chuckled nervously as she re-grabbed Chiho's thighs so the girl could stop strangling her. Her eyes never left the broom though. "Right. Sorry, Miya."

Miya's eyes crinkled in a beautiful smile that had Uzume cringing. Fortunately for the large breasted cloth user, the purplette's were already off her and now on Dante and Kagari.

"Are you all finished getting cleaned up, Dante?" Miya asked innocently. His left eye began twitching a bit, but he did his best not to let his annoyance show.

"It's fine. But I dial to see why I couldn't have just taken a bath." The teen said in a chipper tone despite the cold water being sprayed on him.

"Personally, I think it's more funny."

Dante looked up and saw Tobias was resting above the yard on an air mattress again, legs cross and hands behind his head with his eyes closed and back to the ground.

"Yeah, yeah laugh it up wise guy."

"Never let it be said I have no sense of humor." Tobias smirked, though nobody saw it.

"Oh, well in that case..." Jenny hopped off the porch and took the hose. She then pointed it at Tobias, sending the spray of water at him.

"Hey!" Tobias shouted in shock as he was drenched, making him lose concentration and fall to the ground...right into a puddle of mud. Everyone started laughing as Tobias's got out, his clothes now muddied, even Miya was chuckling lightly behind her hand.

Tobias glared at Jenny. "That's it."

He snapped his arm out and clenched his fist. The spray of water actually bent and hit Jenny right in the face, drenching her.

"Hey!" She objected, dropping the hose and trying to block the spray of water with her hands. "Cut it out!"

"Never annoy a guy with air powers." The teen grumbled. He looked at his clothes and sighed. "Now I'll need a bath."

So with no other choice Tobais bent the air again to direct the water to him, spraying the mud off his clothes before he again used his powers to air dry himself. Quickly.

"That's better." Tobias sighed as his clothes were now clean and dried.

Dante shook his head in amusement. "World's fastest air dryer. Nice. Well, I'm going to get change. Any chance you could help me out?"

Tobias's answer was a breeze blasting Dante. It was a quick yet freezing dry to a cold rinse.

Dante finished getting into clean and dry clothes before walking out of his room. Like he had expected, Akitsu was standing right outside the door, a silent sentinel that someone could almost mistake for a statue. The woman was so damn still it looked like she wasn't even breathing.

"Akitsu," Dante greeted with a slight smile. Said woman looked over at him. Her eyes moved from his eyes, then down to his lips. She blushed and looked away.

"Ah," there was that pause again, "Ashikabi."

"Has there been any change in Tsukiumi's condition?"

"No," Akitsu shook her head slowly, methodically. "She's still asleep. Miya came in twice to dress her wounds and change her bandages, but zero nine hasn't woken up yet."

"I see," Dante said. "Thank you for looking after her."

"Ah..." Akitsu's cheeks turned pink and her head tilted down to look at the ground. "You're welcome."

Dante shook his head, unsure whether he should be amused or not. The ice user was awfully easy to embarrass. Then again, it could just be that she had trouble accepting praise and gratitude. It wouldn't surprise Dante, not when he thought about what her life must have been like in MBI's labs.

"I'm going to check in on her," Dante didn't really know why he felt the need to inform Akitsu of this. It wasn't like this was some kind of hospital or anything with a hierarchical structure that would require him to inform the ice user or anyone else of his intentions. Nevertheless, he still found himself doing so. "Would you like to come inside with me?"

Akitsu tilted her head to the side, silently contemplating his question. After a moment, she nodded.

"Ok."

Room number 204 was the last of the four rooms located on the second floor. It looked just like every other room within Izumo Inn; tatami mat flooring, off white colored walls, a closet on one side and a window on the wall farthest from the door. The only difference was this ones lack of furnishing. Where the room Dante shared with his Sekirei was filled with many modern amenities and western styled furniture, Matsu's room was filled with computers and monitors, and Uzume's room was filled with posters and cosplay outfits, room 204 had none of those, just a single futon laid out in the center of the room upon which Tsukiumi was currently resting.

Dante stood in the entrance way for a moment, indecision clouding his thoughts. After a second or two, and with some verbal nudging from Akitsu ("Ah, Ashikabi?"), Dante entered the room and walked over to where Tsukiumi was resting peacefully.

She looked much better than she had after the battle that had nearly ended in her capture. Actually, that was something of a lie. Right now she looked more like a mummy than anything else, her body, from her neck to her legs, was wrapped in white medical bandages, but at least she had been cleaned up. Her face and arms were no longer covered with grime, sweat, and dirt. She didn't look like she had been running for several days on end. If one discounted the multitude of bandages wrapped around her body they could almost assume the woman was just sleeping.

As Dante looked at the water using Sekirei, uncertainty began to set in again. He wasn't sure why he was even here. Ostensibly it was to check up on Tsukiumi, but with Miya having dressed her wounds and cleaned her up there was really nothing he could do until she woke up. So why was he here then?  
A frown crossed the teens face as he realized he had no clue why he had bothered coming in here when there was nothing for him to do. That realization was offset by the knowledge that there was something he could do, he just wasn't sure if he had the capacity or inclination to do it. The last time he had found himself in a similar position ― how long ago was it? He couldn't even remember ― had been less than enviable. And it was not a place he would like to be again.

Thankfully, the situation with Tsukiumi was nowhere near as gruesome as that time had been. The water user wasn't in any danger, she was suffering from no fatal wounds. In fact, most of the damage done to her was superficial at best. Yes, if he looked at it from a more positive perspective, things were definitely looking up from the last time he had sat next to somebodies bedside.

A slight jingling sound and the clinking of chains brought Damte's mind back to the present. He looked over at Tsukiumi again. His hand reached out towards her, as if to grab her hand, or perhaps run his fingers through her hair. He stopped himself before following through, however, and after a moment, withdrew his hand and stood up.

He made his way back out of the room, the 'chink, chink chink' of Akitsu's chains accompanying the sound of their footsteps. After the door to Tsukiumi's temporary residence closed behind him and Akitsu, Dante turned his attention towards the ice user.

"Akitsu, would you mind heading downstairs and getting Musubi?" he asked. "She should still be sparring with Miya," the teen cocked his head to the side for barely a second, long enough to hear Musubi's shouts and grunts and pained yelps when Miya hit her on the head with the butt of her sword. Yep, they were definitely still sparring.

"Yes, Ashikabi," Akitsu was very quick to do as commanded, eager to please her Ashikabi.

"Oh, and also tell her to clean up as well," Dante called out. "I'll be starting dinner in a while and I don't want her sweating all over the food when you guys help me prepare it."

"Ah," Akitsu paused. She turned slowly to look at him. Her head cocked to the side for a few seconds before she nodded. With a soft, monotoned "yes" she turned back around and began heading down the stairs to get Musubi and convince her to stop sparring with Miya and take a bath.

With Akitsu gone, Dante began heading over to the sliding door that was the hidden entrance to Matsu's room. Without even bothering to knock, he slid the door open and walked inside.

As always the inside of Matsu's room was dark save the light granted to the small area by the myriad of computer screens that littered three of the four walls within the room. Dante's keen eyes had already adjusted to the low amount of light and could make out the information scrolling across many of the screens. From the flow of data and the images on several of the monitors, it was clear to him that Matsu had been working hard.

And she was still working from the looks of things. Sitting in front of one of the consoles was none other than his red haired, perverted Sekirei. Matsu was staring at one of the monitors with lines of flowing data that Dante recognized as computer coding intently, her fingers flying across the keyboard in front of her at speeds that seemed to rival Dante's own speed at creating handseals. It was an impressive feat to be sure.

"Matsu will be with you in just a second, Dante," Matsu told him, alerting the hybrid male in question to the fact that she knew he was there. He assumed the woman had a camera planted directly outside of her room so she could see who was near her. Looking over at one of the screens cycling through various images of the rooms within Izumo Inn, Dante knew he was correct. "Why don't you take a seat while Matsu finishes this up."

"Sure." Dante replied as he moved further into the room. He sat down behind and slightly off to the side of the red head so he could see what Matsu was doing from over her shoulder. It looked like she was hacking into a database, at least, that's what he assumed she was doing. While Dante made sure to keep up to date on new high end technology and how they worked, even he would admit that his skills at hacking could use some polishing. Still, he was sure his guess was right. The coding looked incredibly complex, which likely meant she was delving into MBI's database, the fact that a lot of the images on some of the other screens seemed to be showing a birds eye view of Shinto Teito merely confirmed that fact in his mind.

"And... there!"

Tapping the keys a few more times with theatrically slow and overly exaggerated motions, Matsu finished whatever it was she was doing. The screen went blank for a moment, then a screen saver of... Dante in his underwear popped up on the screen.

"Where did you get that image?" asked Dante as Matsu turned around to face him. He was pretty sure that he had gotten rid of any and all cameras and spyware within his room. He even did a routine sweep through the area regularly with his sonic. Which meant this woman was either getting very good at hiding her peeping equipment, or she was setting them up and then taking them down when she got what she wanted. The salacious red head just gave him a mischievous smile as she poked her tongue out between her lips. It only seemed to confirm that one of these two theories was the most likely scenario.

"Wouldn't you like to know."

Dante frowned, wondering if he should force her to delete it, but in the end decided not to. It wasn't like Matsu having an image of him in nothing but his undergarments as a screen saver was that big a deal.

"So, I heard you got my entire battle on tape." Dante said, bringing up the entire point he had come in.

"Yes," Matsu's expression turned rather serious as she looked at him like something to be studied. "I assumed you wouldn't want MBI seeing it, so I managed to create a feedback loop by utilizing another video recording from last month that happened at the same time to keep from arousing suspicion that it was tampered with. A good thing to, considering what that video recording showed."

Dante nodded, well aware of what had been showed.

"I have to admit, I'm surprised by what I saw from that recording," Matsu continued. She took off her glasses, causing her face to look much more mature than it usually was, and studied him with more intense expression. "I knew you were strong from what I managed to gather of you so far, but being able to survive a nasty hit to a brick wall, fighting against Mutsu directly afterwords, and level fouring a Sekirei is a bit more than I imagined you would be capable of. To be honest, it's find of scary."

There weren't many ways Dante could respond to her words, especially when what Matsu had seen wasn't even the tip of the ice berg of what he could actually accomplish. The fact of the matter was no one within the Sekirei plan actually had the capability of defeating him, not even Miya. Hell, none of the Sekirei even had the capability of defeating the more powerful eneimes of his age, much less him. While it was true that many of the Sekirei he met had the potential to be as strong as some of his more troublesome foes, none of them could ever truely threaten him.

"I take it that's the only other level 4 in the game?"

"Yes," Matsu took a deep breath. "I really didn't expect there to be any more injuries like this." Dante nodded, it was a fair assessment.

"I mean, while the Sekirei Plan is supposed to be dangerous, due to the fact that it's essentially a war between Sekirei, there have always been strict procedures and rules that most people follow. And while seriously injuring a Sekirei is not against the rules, it's definitely frowned upon."

Dante shrugged. "I didn't have much time to make any plan that would have allowed all of us to walk away. And I would rather one of my enemies get hurt rather than Tsukiumi because I was afraid of accidentally offing one of my enemies Sekirei."

"I understand."

"So you're sure that no one else saw what happened during the battle between Mutsu and myself?" Dante asked, just for clarification. While he had acted quickly in getting Matsu to work her magic, there was always a possibility that someone had seen it before she could do her thing. He wanted to be one hundred percent sure that no one saw the video of that battle.

"Yes," Matsu nodded her head. "While they were alerted to your battle when number thirty eight was terminated and reacted very quickly to recover her due to it being a level 4 termination, they didn't actually look at the video feedback from the satellites due to, I suspect, the fact that they felt they were under a time constraint and it would have taken more effort to pull the file from the databanks, since this particular video was automatically encrypted due to the nature of the recording." She paused, then, almost as an after thought added, "and Minaka was doing his own thing when it happened, so he didn't get a chance to look at the file either."

Dante let out a sigh of relief at the news.

"Thank you, Matsu," he thanked her. "I'm not sure what I would have done without you. You did a good job."

"Good enough for a reward?" asked Matsu with a flirtatious, or perhaps perverted would be a better word, smile. She placed her glasses back on and suddenly, like a flip had been switched, the mature and intelligent Matsu once more became the pervert.

Cue shudder.

Dante opened his mouth, no doubt to tell her something along the lines of maybe later, when Matsu spoke again. "After all, you promised Matsu that if she was a good girl you would let her do some experimentation." He promptly shut his mouth after that and took a moment to consider the woman before him and her request.

Truth be told, he was having difficulty being intimate with his Sekirei. It wasn't they weren't attractive. He had literally seen goddesses and Sekirei bodies put theirs to shame. But he had been alone for some time now, it was hard being intimate. Loving, caring, making sure they were ok and happy, that was easier, but intimacy...

'Then again, isn't it a good thing I haven't done anything else?' Dante thought. He was a time traveler and universe jumper. He did want to get closer to his Sekirei, but did he want a real physical relationship when he would eventually go away while they stayed here and died, ravaged by time while he was almost untouched? Would it be easier and better if he kept his distance in this matter?

Then Dante realized he was just trying to make up reasons not to do this, and for one reason. He was scared. Scared of being hurt, hurting his Sekirei. Hurting the people who loved him with their entire being. And he was denying them the one thing they deserved to have their feelings returned.

Dante made up his mind.

"Alright," Dante said softly. Strangely enough, Matsu either had not heard him, or had been prepared for him to reject her because a second after he gave his single word answer, she began defending why she deserved to 'experiment' with him.

"Matsu understands that Dante wants to take it slow, but sometimes I think you're taking things a little too slow. Matsu's not asking for much, just a little..." she trailed off after a few seconds, blinking. The red head stared at him for some time, her face blank, as if her mind was just now registering something that had happened some time ago. After a few seconds, her eyes widened in shock. "Wait. Did you just say alright?"

Dante's lips twitched very slightly in amusement, but it quickly vanished as he began preparing himself for what he planned on doing.

"I did. After all, you've been helpful, and a good girl. And do you know what happens to good girls?"

Matsu shook her head, her eyes still wide. Dante smirked, somehow looking predatory as he leaned forward to Matsu's ear.

"They get rewarded," he purred. Matsu's eyes, impossibly, widened even more. Her cheeks took on a deep shade of red and her breathing began to pick up a bit. Through the bond, he could sense Matsu's arousal. It was so powerful it almost felt like a physical sensation rather than a mental one, and it pushed him.

He pulled back before smashing his lips to Matsu's. Her wings came out, glowing but they went largely ignored as Matsu brought her hands to Dante's head, pulling him in closer. The pair was unaware of anything besides each other as they sank into the kiss. Dante probed with his tongue, asking for entrance, and Matsu eagrly allowed it. She moaned as he checked every corner before fighting back with her own tongue.

This went on for a few minutes until the need for air became to great for Matsu and she had to pull back. Both of them were breathing heavily while Matsu's face was redder then her hair.

"Wow..." She gasped out.

"Yeah..." Dante agreed.

No other words were needed as they started anew, right up until they heard the door open.

"Hey, Dante, Miya was wondering...oh."

Both of them jerked away from each other and looked at the door. Tobias was standing in the door way, face red as he realized what he had walked into.  
"Uumm, sorry. Guess I should've knocked. I'll,uh, just..."

"To-bi-as..."

Tobias froze as Dante's killing intent skyrocketed and his aura formed. Dante's head lifted up enough for his eyes to flash menacingly.

"Gottagobye!" Tobias said in one breath before turning and running, Dante right behind him shouting while crashes starting sounding through the house.

"I'm gonna cut your heart with a spoon!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to! Calm down!"

"I will once I carve your heart out!"

Matsu in the meantime was surprised at Dante's reaction, she also felt herself blush at his possessiveness. She slowly lifted her fingers to her lips, which were tingling, and blushed deeper.

'That was a very good reward,' Matsu thought with a nervous giggle.

It took a few minutes, but with help from Miya, Jenny, and Kazehana, Dante calmed down after being talked *cough* beaten down *cough*. Though when Miya found out why Dante had been upset with Tobias...she wasn't entirely pleased.

That resulted in the current situation.

"Ha! You think you can beat me with those sucky moves!"

"Oi! Don't diss my moves you damned button masher! Unlike you, I actually use skill to earn my wins."

"Why don't you say that after you win a game against me, hmm?"

"Grr! I'll show you how to play the game, bro! I swear I'll win this time!"

"Good luck with that."

Sitting on the large couch within his bedroom, Dante Price found himself playing Super Smash Bros Brawl for the Wii against Uzume. They had been playing for the last hour or so, and so far they had played ten rounds with Dante winning each round by a landslide. Not that this surprised him in the least. When it came to video games or anything involving hands really, he was king.  
Dante was currently using a Wii controller and Nunchuck, playing as Sonic The Hedgehog while Uzume was using Samus.

"What the hell was that!?"

"Heh, you like it? That was my special move."

"Special move my ass! All you're doing is mashing buttons like a maniac on speed!"

"Think whatever you like. You're just jealous of my skills."

Dante's fingers were a blur as he mashed the buttons and operated the joystick on the nunchuck. They probably should've broke due to the force Dante used and his speed, but he had secretly boosted their durability with some tinkering on his part.

"No, no, no, no!" Uzume wailed in shock and despair as she watched Sonic spin before colliding with Samus, knocking her out of bounds and taking her last life.  
"I can't believe it! You beat me again!" She turned to glare at the teen sitting next to her and glared at him. "How do you keep beating me?"

Dante just put his hands on the back of his head and grinned at her.

"I'm just awesome like that."

Uzume's right eye began twitching.

"When did you get so cocky, bro?" When Dante did nothing more than widen that blasted smile on his face, Uzume switched tactics. "Whatever, let's go another round. I'll beat you this time for sure."

"I don't think so," Dante said, the look of smug superiority still on his face, only this time it was hightend with amusement when he saw Uzume's left eye join the right one in it's twitching. "You've had your three strikes so now you're out. Why don't you let your Ashikabi play me now. I bet she'll give me a better challenge than you."

At the mention of her Ashikabi, Uzume turned her head to look at Chiho, who was just sitting on the comfortable leather chair closest to her Sekirei. The girl had been sitting there since the beginning of what had turned into a battle royal between the cloth user and the enigmatic gamer. Her hands were situated in her lap and there was a placid smile on her face, as if just watching Uzume have fun brought her a kind of nirvana that few could or ever would achieve.  
That changed the moment Dante said her name and Uzume turned to look at her. The girl's face turned a light shade of red at seeing her Sekirei and her savior both looking at her with equally intense expressions.

"You want me to play?" asked Chiho, her voice sounding like a mouse squeaking. "I-I'm not sure I'd be very good, Dante. I'm sure Uzume can give you a much better challenge than I could."

Uzume puffed out her chest at her Ashikabi's praise of her Smash Bros fighting skills. Unfortunately, he couldn't let her ego get too big, therefore it was his job to burst her bubble before her head inflated to such a proportion that it wouldn't be able to fit through his door.

"I very much doubt you could be any worse than Uzume," Dante said dryly. He studiously ignored the loud 'Oi!' coming from the cloth user. "Remember, I just beat her ten times in a row. I need someone new to give me a challenge, and seeing as you are the only other person in the room that leaves you as the only option." He offered the girl a smile. "I'm sure you'll do fine. And besides, it's not right for us to do have all the fun playing video games while you sit there looking pretty."

Chiho flushed, whether due to his smile or the looking pretty comment was unknown. Dante figured it was a mixture of both. The petite young woman wasn't very good at accepting compliments. He would have called her humble, but he had a feeling there was another reason for her seeming inability to accept praise of any kind.

Whatever the case was, it did not change the uncertain expression on Chiho's face.

"I don't know..."

"Ah, come on, Chiho-baby," Uzume thrust the controllers into her Ashikabi's hand. Chiho blinked at the controllers now in her hands with the same uncertainty she had when Dante suggested she try her hand playing against him. "You have to play and beat this jerk in my honor. At least give it a try."

Chiho looked at the controller uncertainly. Dante doubted the girl had ever played a video game before in her life. They didn't have any at the hospital, and while it was possible she had played some before the disease that had rendered her a paraplegic, he highly doubted the girl had even so much as touched a video game system. She seemed more like the type who enjoyed being outdoors and exploring than the kind of girl who would sit at home on her rear all day and play video games. He could respect that. Still, the lithe young woman seemed game.

"W-Well, ok," she said, still sounding a tad uncertain. "I'll give it a try..."

"Give what a try?"

The voice that came from the doorway had Uzume stiffening in both shock and fear. Chiho looked surprised as she turned her head to face the person the voice belonged to, but she didn't seem to be fearful as her Sekirei was. Probably because she had yet to actually be on the receiving end of the woman's hanya mask. On the other side of things, Dante was completely calm and composed as he looked at Miya whilst said woman stood in the doorway, one hand holding her broom while the other was on it's handle as if it were some kind of sword.  
Considering the way she was able to swing that thing, it might as well have been a sword.

"Just what are you three doing?" asked Miya, her voice mild and her head tilted in what could be considered idle curiosity. There was a smile on her face, a very pleasant smile that had Uzume shuddering subconsciously in fear.

"Aheheheh," Uzume squeaked out her usual laugh, though it sounded nothing like her normal amused laugh. "Well," she coughed into her hand. "We were just, um, watching bro here like you asked us to and, uh..." Her eyes darted to and fro as if looking for a miracle to save her, or perhaps an escape route should things turned south. There were none. "And uh, well, you know..."

"No, I don't know," Miya smiled pleasantly. "Why don't you enlighten me."

Uzume looked close to hyperventilating, much to the surprise of her Ashikabi who wasn't entirely sure why her Sekirei looked so frightened by the pleasant landlady. Dante knew why, of course. Miya could be damn scary when she wanted to be. He had seen her use that mask of her's to great effect. He wondered if she would use it here.

One can always hope.

"We're playing Super Smash Bros Brawl," Dante told the purple haired landlady, not at all afraid of repercussions unlike a certain veiled Sekirei. "It's a very fun game. Would you like to play, Miya?"

Miya's right eye twitched slightly before she regained her pleasant demeanor.  
"No, thank you. I am not really into computer games."

"That's too bad," Dante actually sounded somewhat despondent. He was sure that Miya would be killer at Smash Bros. "So, did you need something?"

There were several seconds of silence as Miya stared at Dante, her beautiful face set in that gorgeous smile she always had on. The look did not fool him. He knew she was annoyed with him, both because of his immunity to her fear tactics and because he more or less refused to comply with her demands.

Though it would be slightly inaccurate to say he did not acquiesce to them. He had confined himself to his room after the Matsu incident as she had requested. It just so happened that keeping him confined in the space where he had 'set up shop' so to speak, was not conducive to keeping him from enjoying himself.  
The joys of video games. One of the few inventions that humanity has made right. With trial and error.

Miya sighed, obviously realizing this fact. He wondered if she was going to admit defeat or just tactically retreat and do some reconnaissance on him until she had a clearer idea of how to properly chastise him.  
He wished her luck with that.

"I came to inform you that Tsukiumi is awake," Miya told him. Now that got Dante's attention. It also seemed to get the attention of both Chiho and Uzume, if their neck breaking head turns were any indication. "She woke up just a few moments ago while I was about to get rid of her bandages."

"And how is she?" asked Dante, trying not to let anything show on his face. He wouldn't necessarily say he was worried about the number zero nine, but he had felt a bit apprehensive about how she would react once she had woken up. Given that she was Tsundere, it wouldn't surprise him if she started shouting and causing a ruckus.

"She is fine," Miya assured the teen. Dante noticed her smile widen and wondered if perhaps his carefully constructed mask of indifference was not as solid as he assumed it was. "She was a little disoriented when she woke up, but after I informed her of her whereabouts and how she got here, she seemed to calm down."

"That's good," Dante sighed in relief. The last thing he needed was for Tsukiumi to freak out over finding herself in a new and strange place that she had never seen before. That she was a Sekirei only made it worse. That her power was over water made the magnitude of how catastrophic such an event could be rise by a factor of at least ten. Water and Japanese style houses such as this just did not mix.

Maybe he should fix that one of these days.

"She wanted to see you," Miya started again. "That's actually why I'm here."

"Oh?" Dante couldn't help but grin at her words. "But I thought I was grounded, mom?" There was a definite tone of sarcasm in the teen's voice, and Miya noticed it instantly.

"If that's the case then perhaps I should take out all of your video games and that television of yours so that you don't have anything to occupy your time with," Miya suggested with a smile so pleasant it almost sent chills down Dante's back. Uzume and Chiho didn't look much better. "Maybe then you'll actually reflect on why I had you stay in your room in the first place."

Dante snorted. "I have endless things to amuse myself with. It's just a matter of one being creative enough to find them."

Miya glared challengingly at Dante, trying to catch the slightest hint of false bravado or nervousness. She didn't find any and sighed.

She thought she finally had him. Back to the drawing board.

A uncertain look marred his face as he stood in front of the door that led to Tsukiumi's room. He was somewhat nervous since inside these doors was the Sekirei who had first tried to kill him, kill him, and...be winged by him before fainting.

"Well," a voice from behind startled the Timelord from his thoughts. "Are you going to go in, or just stand there?"

Dante turned his head ever so slightly to see Miya standing behind him, that ever pleasant smile on her face. He gave her a slightly annoyed look.

"Why are you following me?" he asked plainly. After that fiasco in Matsu's room that had resulted in Miya's punishment, she had dropped slightly in his respects. Naturally, that last part had become a non factor since she had followed him.

"Seeing as how I can no longer trust you not to give into your beastly desires and take advantage of all these women you have bound to yourself, I have decided it would be best if I came with you when you speak to Tsukiumi."

Dante's eyes began twitching. The way she said that made it sound like that moment back in Matsu's room was all his fault and not that of his most perverted Sekirei. "This is simply to ensure that you do not do anything immodest, Dante."

She said that in a way saying she didn't quite trust him anymore and that hurt. Him chasing Tobias through her house and shouting must've really pissed her off.

"Right," Dante decided it was best to just not argue with the purple haired landlady on this. Though, if he were honest with himself he had to question her 'no lewd acts' policy. She had been a married woman at one point, so unless she was a prude who had never experienced the act of being intimate with her husband, she had most likely committed these 'lewd' acts herself at some time during the past.

So why then, did was she so set against other people doing them now? From what he understood the bond between Sekirei and Ashikabi was that of a metaphysical and empathic connection that was formed around the love a Sekirei had for their Ashikabi. If one were to think of it that way then a Sekirei bond was akin to marriage, only it was more powerful and could not be broken like most how most human marriage often broke. Or...could it?

Maybe she was like this simply because she was bitter since she was no longer getting any? Dante shook those thoughts, for some reason too disturbing to think about. While he picked on her and got on her nerves a lot, he did actually like the woman.

His eyes landed back on the door that led to Tsukiumi's room, a frown appearing on his face. Dante was not sure why, but for whatever reason he was feeling inexplicably nervous about entering the room and talking to the number zero nine. While feeling nervous was not completely foreign to him, the timelord hybrid could not understand why he felt this way. He had no reason to feel any form anxiety. Yet for some reason he was.

"Dante?"

A soft, feminine hand landed on his shoulder. He looked down to see the surprisingly delicate fingers and soft looking smooth skin of Miya's hand. It was always a surprise to see just how pristine the woman's body was. Despite being a powerful Sekirei who was well versed with a sword and spent much of her time laboring around the inn, her skin remained perfect. There were no callouses from hard labor or the sword she wielded. He could not see any scars on what parts her body he had managed to catch glimpse of.

His head followed the hand to the wrist it was connected to, which faded into the voluminous light purple sleeves of Miya's kimono. His eyes traveled up the sleeves towards the woman's shoulder, then face. She was giving him a look of mild concern, both eyes were open and studying him intently.

"I'm fine," he assured the purple haired landlady. She did not look very convinced, but seemed to decide it was best not to argue. With a final squeeze of reassurance, her hand left his shoulder and came back to her side.

Taking a deep breath and releasing it, Dante did what he could to dispel his strange case of nervousness, reached for the handle and pulled the door open.  
He walked into the room, Miya following behind him, and took a quick look around. It looked just as the same as it had the last time he was in here. The only difference now was that Tsukiumi was wide awake and no longer covered in bandages. Said woman was currently sitting up straight, the covers of her futon only covering the lower half of her body while her torso was covered by a large white t-shirt that Dante guessed had once belonged to Miya's husband due to it being several sizes too large for the woman in question to wear.  
Tsukiumi had noticed his presence as soon as he entered the room, perhaps even before that. Her head had snapped over in his direction when the door opened and he stepped inside. The moment he had, her eyes widened before her cheeks took on the shade of a boiled lobster. She had quickly looked down at her hands as they wrung themselves on her lap, though every now and again her eyes would flicker to him, their startling blue color just visible beneath the fringe of her hair.

"I'm glad to see you're awake," Dante broke the silence as he moved further into the room and sat down next to Tsukiumi's futon. His words caused Tskiumi's already flushed cheeks to darken, something Dante would have not thought possible were he not seeing it with his own eyes. "How are you feeling?"

"I-I am fine," Tsukiumi muttered, her embarrassment welling up for a second. Her back straightened and she sniffed haughtily, her looks and expression making her look like one of those arrogant yet very beautiful princesses people sometimes read about in stories. "But this does not surprise me. I am the strongest, after all."

Dante cracked a smile.

"That's good to hear. I was... pretty worried about you when you fainted on me." Dante admitted.

Tsukiumi's face went straight from arrogant and haughty, to embarrassed and shy in less than two point five seconds.

"You've been sleeping for a long time now," Dante continued, taking note of the woman's reaction. "5 hours to be precise."

"Has it really been that long?" asked Tsukiumi, her voice conveying her shock.  
"Yep. How long were you running from those guys anyway?"

"I was not running!" Tsukiumi's shocked expression gave way to a fierce scowl at the mentioning of her 'strategic' withdrawal. "I would never run away from honorable combat! Those damn dogs fought dirty, ganging up on me as they did! They did not even have the common courtesy of giving me there name and number!"

A chuckle almost escaped his lips at the indignation on Tsukiumi's face. The look was almost endearing. He did not laugh for the reason being, was because there were more important matters to discuss and he did not want the blond haired Sekirei getting distracted.

"So..."

It took a moment for Dante to realize he had no clue how he was supposed to go about this particular conversation. It was difficult on it's own without adding in the awkward fact that this woman was the kind who would more than likely react violently when an embarrassing topic was brought up.

"I hope you plan on taking responsibility for me."

Fortunately for him, it seemed as if Tsukiumi had no problem bringing up their previous point of contention. Though perhaps contention was not quite the best word to describe this topic. She had pretty much told him point blank that he was going to take responsibility for her.

Of course, all this happened right before she passed out, which led to the current situation they had found themselves in. He wondered if this was karma? Maybe, maybe not.

"Oh my," Miya's voice came from the background, bringing both Tsukiumi's attention, and Dante's – who had almost forgotten the woman was there – on to her.

"You are..." Tsukiumi's face scrunched up in thought as she stared at the purple haired woman. Dante couldn't help but find it strangely cute. "... the woman who was changing my bandages."

"I'm so glad you remembered me." Miya gave Tsuikiumi a gentle smile. "My name is Miya Asama. I am both the proprietor and landlady of Izumo Inn, which you currently reside in."

"I see."

"In any event," Dante began again, hoping to get the ball rolling on the topic he had been trying to keep them on before anyone else could say anything to derail them. "I have every intention of taking responsibility for you, especially after all the trouble I went through to rescue you from Mikogami's hounds."  
"Hmph! I did not need saving." And of course, that was the only thing Tsukiumi took out of his words. The woman seemed quite indignant at the mere mentioning of how Dante had saved her from a fate worse than death for Sekirei. "I am the strongest Sekirei. I do not need some monkey to protect me!"

Dante felt his eyes twitch slightly. This girl was a real piece of work. Still, it wouldn't do to get angry. She was tsundere, he reminded himself. This was just how she was.

"Then, pray tell, why had you captured by those three Sekirei when I first found you?"

"That..." Tsukiumi's face turned red, though whether it was from embarrassment, anger, or a combination of the two was unknown. After a moment or two of flushing and sputtering she turned her head and let out a huff. "As I said before, they had fought using cowardly and dishonorable tactics. Had I fought any of them one on one it would have been I that claimed victory."

"But they didn't fight you one on one, and you had been captured by the time I arrived and would have been taken to Mikogami to be forcefully winged had I not intervened," Dante gave a satisfied smile as he presented the blond haired beauty his flawless logic. There was no way she could argue against this point without sounding like an idiot. "Which means I did save you."  
Tsukiumi stared at him. Despite the fact that only a second past in real time, the intensity of the stare seemed to stretch that single second to well over several minutes. Dante wondered if all females were capable of similar feats as he had yet to meet a women who was not able to perform something comparable to the look he was receiving now.

After the second past, Tskiumi's cheeks took on a light pink hue. She turned her head a bit and closed her eyes.

"W-Well," she started, sounding both nervous and self conscious. "I suppose you did at that. For a monkey, you are quite courageous."

Dante almost snorted at the woman's words. It was both amusing and annoying to see the woman trying to save face by insulting him and giving him a back hand compliment at the same time. But then, had he really expected anything less from this woman?

"I'm not a 'monkey,' as you said. I'm only half of one. But regardless, are you sure this is what you want?" asked Dante, his expression shifting from slightly amused to serious. Tsukiumi looked startled, though the blond was not sure if the look was because of his change in demeanor or his words. "Once you gain your wings, you won't be able to take them back? Are sure you want this?"

In most circumstances, Dante probably wouldn't have asked that question. As a a general occurrence, most Sekirei were eager, scratch that, obsessed with finding their Ashikabi and gaining their wings. And while he was positive Tsukiumi was the same way – not willing to show it because she was tsundere – he wanted to be one hundred percent sure this was what she wanted before they went through with this.

"Of course I am sure," Tsukiumi huffed, her arms crossing over her chest as an indignant expression appeared on her face. She looked insulted that Dante would ask her such a question after she had just finished telling him that he had to take responsibility for her. "Do not make me repeat myself."

"Right, sorry," Dante apologized, though it was easy for most people to tell from the amused undertone in his voice that he was not being sincere in his apology. Fortunately for him, while Miya knew this and had covered her mouth with the left sleeve of her kimono to hide her giggling, Tsukiumi did not seem to recognize the tone of amusement in his voice and gave him a nod as if to accept his apology.

"Apology accepted," she said imperiously, not even realizing that Dante had not been making a serious apology.

"So," Dante started, shifting his body so that instead of sitting seiza he was sitting with his legs crossed. "I suppose we should get you your wings then?"

"Y-Yes," Tsukiumi's face began to flush pink as she started stumbling over her words. "I guess we should..." The blond haired Sekirei trailed off, the pink hue of her cheeks darkening as she bent her head down so that her hair was hovering over her eyes, leaving only a little bit of those clear blue irises visible as she worried her lower lip.

He then reached out towards Tsukiumi with his left hand. Dante placed it under her head, cupping her chin so that he could turn her head towards him. Her eyes were staring up at him through the fringe of her blond bangs, looking both eager and uncertain. Her cheeks were flaring up like a red star. Her breathing was getting heavier as the emotions from her reaction began increasing. It seemed she had been holding it in since he had appeared before her. Dante tilted Tsukiumi's head up and bent his down to meet her mouth in a kiss.

The first thing that went through his head was about how Tsukiumi's lips were warm and soft, slightly moist and tasted of the sea. Surprisingly, the salty taste of her lips enhanced the kiss rather than detract from it.

For a moment, Dante wondered if the reason he found this kiss so incredibly wonderful was because it was the first one he had given willingly, of his own accord with no outside influence and no bond to addle his thoughts. There was a distinct possibility that was the case. So far as he knew, all of his previous wingings had more to do with the bond forming without his knowledge and forcing his Sekirei's emotions onto him. This would be the first time Dante had willingly allowed himself to grant a Sekirei wings without being influenced by anything other than his own desires.

Of course, these thoughts fled him mere seconds after coming to his mind, and any other theories he may have come up with left him seconds after entering and all the time traveler could find himself focusing on was this ridiculously beautiful woman and the feel of her lips pressed firmly against his own.

Dante eyes began to flutter closed as the kiss began to grow more passionate. He could feel Tsukiumi melding into him. Her lips seemed to fit with his own perfectly.

Had he kept his eyes open, he would have seen the wings flaring into existence behind Tsukiumi. Though the term 'flaring into existence' may not have been an apt one to use in this instance.

It started at the Sekirei Crest, which was burning brightly on the upper part of Tsukiumi's back right in between the shoulder blades where the back attached itself to the neck. Water. Small droplets of precipitation began gathering near the crest. They coalesced into existence, molecule by molecule, first in ones, then twos, threes, more and more began gathering around the crest at an ever increasing rate until water there were literally multiple jets of water streaming in towards the woman's back like a couple hoses.

The water continued to flow towards Tsukiumi's back, defying the laws of physics as it began to take shape and grow. Starting from the crest and moving outward, large wings like those of an angels spread out behind Tsukiumi's back. The two great wings that were taller than Dante when he stood at full height stretched out behind the blond Sekirei, bending when they were impeded from reaching their full length by the ceiling.

They pressed against the plaster ceiling, bending like some kind of organic material without bones instead of a liquid that should have not been able to hold any form. Despite how the two wings were being pressed against the ceiling and their tips touching the walls, nothing they touched actually got wet.

However, Dante saw none of this. All he saw were the backs of his eyelids as he and Tsukiumi continued to kiss. All he felt were her lips as they pressed against his, her tongue as it grazed against his teeth, his tongue, his mouth. Nothing else mattered to him right now. There was nothing else except this woman, this amazing, incredible vision of beauty who had somehow managed to light a fire under him.

He did not know how long he and Tsukiumi remained where they were, kissing feverishly as if they were trying to consume the other. It could have been minutes. It could have been hours. The only reason Dante even stopped was because of the hand that had clamped down on his shoulder.

The action was startling enough that the timelord hybrid managed to somehow pry his mouth off of Tsukiumi's. Even then it took an astonishing amount of willpower, and the needy whimper that came from the newest member of his flock certainly did not help matters.

"I believe you two have been at this for quite long enough," Miya said, her voice strained. Dante turned to look at the woman who had pulled him from his own lust induced haze. He blinked several times as his mind came down from what almost felt like a post drug high before he was able to properly look at the woman grasping his shoulder.

It was probably the first time he had ever seen Miya look so embarrassed. Granted, he had seen her embarrassed before, back when they had their mutual apology during that time when Dante had discovered her and Matsu spying on him when he healed Tobias. But even though he had seen her embarrassed, he had never seen her quite so...flustered? Yes, flustered was a good word. Not even when she had found out about him making out with Matsu had she looked as flustered as she did now.

Then again, she had come after the fact, not during.

"Right," Dante said. It was only now, after he had finished talking, that he realized just how short of breath he was.

That was surprising. Dante had always been a stamina freak, even before he gained his so called "immortality". A combination of his extensive training and timelord DNA being inside of him had ensured that he would almost never run out of energy. That stamina had increased to levels unheard of since then, and now there was not a soul in this universe who could probably outlast him in anything.

Shaking that thought off, Dante took a quick moment to check himself over. He only needed a minute to take stock of himself. Aside from being short of breath, his face felt hot. It felt almost like someone had stuck his body in a furnace. His body was slightly sweaty from his exertions, which was surprising because he and Tsukiumi had only kissed.

At least, that's what he thought until his mind began taking stock of the rest of his surroundings. It was only seconds later that he realized his position and Tsukiumi's had changed sometime during their kiss.

The first thing he noticed was that he was no longer sitting with his legs crossed. Instead they had been straightened in front of him. He could only assume his body had reacted instinctively to the weight on top of him. He was also leaning backwards, with his left hand positioned behind him to act as his support pillar. This was probably due to the pressure being exerted on his chest.

And that was when he noticed Tsukiumi's position. She was the weight currently pressing down on his legs. Sometime during the kiss she had moved. That, or he had pulled her onto him. Where once she had been sitting on her futon with the covers hiding the lower half of her body, now she was sitting on top of him, her wonderful, mile long legs straddling his thighs.  
At some point during the kiss, Dante's right arm had wrapped itself around the blond haired Sekirei. This lent some credence to his theory of him pulling Tsukiumi to him. Though he liked to think she had moved of her own accord.  
The last thing he felt were Tsukiumi's hands. They were pressing themselves firmly against his chest. Under his shirt.

Dante shuddered and it took everything he had not to fall back into a lust induced haze as he realized that sometime during their kiss (make out session) Tsukiumi had buried her hands under his shirt to caress his well formed pectoral and abdominal muscles without being hindered by any fabric.  
He was actually surprised that was the last thing he noticed. One would think that feeling the warm, delicate hands of a female touching them anywhere would be the first thing someone noticed. Then again, having the warm, beautiful body of said female those hands belonged to currently straddling him was making it very difficult for Dante to think at all.

Tsuikuimi also seemed to have noticed their change in position. Her eyes, which had already been wide from having realized Miya was still in the room with them, widened even more. They were so wide, in fact, that they looked comical.

The blond haired Sekirei's face began to turn red. Starting from the twin spots of bright warmth on her cheeks and slowly spreading to the rest of her face. From the roots of her hair to well past her neck, Tsukiumi's face and at the very least the upper half of her body began taking on the same shade as a boiled lobster.

Her pupils dilated as a look of horrific embarrassment crossed her face. Dante only had enough time for one word when he realized what was about to happen.

"Crap."

"Water Celebration!"

The universe really did not like him today.

"Did you really have to soak me like that?"

Dante's eyes twitched violently as he walked down the hall towards the living room. Walking at his side was Tsukiumi, her cheeks slightly pink due to what she had done to him while both her arms clung to his left one. Despite her obvious embarrassment over having smacked him face first with what was essentially a large ball of condensed water, she seemed to be unwilling to admit to being at fault.

"It is not my fault," the flush on Tsukiumi's cheeks deepened just at the mere mention of their kiss within the room she had been sleeping in, even if it was just indirectly mentioned. "Honestly, you should not have been so forward with me."

"I was under the impression that in order to gain your wings, a kiss was required due to the exchange of DNA through mucousal contact," Dante replied to her words in a dry tone of voice. "If that is not the case than please correct me. Was there anything else I could have done to avoid getting hit by a ball of water?"

"Your sarcasm is unappreciated," Tsukiumi mumbled, sounding both angry and embarrassed. Not that Dante particularly cared how embarrassed she was at this moment. After all, he was the one who had suffered from her reaction. Or was that over reaction?

Behind them, Miya raised an arm to hide her mouth behind the sleeves of her kimono and giggled.

"Something amusing you, Miss Miya?" asked Dante as he turned his head slightly so he could look at her out of the corner of his left eye.

With her eyes alight with thinly veiled mirth; the tiny, amused smile he knew she was sporting behind the fabric of her kimono; and the soft, tinkling bell-like giggle that escaped her lips, Dante knew the landlady of Izumo Inn was finding this whole situation far too amusing for her own good.

"Oh no," Miya assured him, those purple orbs barely visible behind half lidded eyes. "I assure you, there is absolutely nothing amusing about seeing you soaking wet." The way she spoke with such a bemused undertone did very little to assure him that her words were true. In fact, they did the exact opposite. "Or getting hit by a ball of water."

"I'm sure," Dante murmured as he and the two women with him came to the shoji screen door leading into the living room. Without much hesitation on his part, Dante opened the door and stepped inside, an embarrassed Tsukiumi who was trying to mask said embarrassment behind a haughty exterior and a giggling Miya right behind him.

While no one was inside of the room, a quick look at the opposite end revealed Akitsu and Kusano sitting out on the veranda just outside of the Shoji screen doors. The youngest of his Sekirei was sitting on the snow woman's lap playing with the cold beauties white locks. As was per usual, the second member of his flock was allowing the girl and tug and pull on her hair with the patience of a saint.

Dante walked out on the vendetta and looked out at the yard to see Musubi was interestingly sparring with Tobias. The Sekirei had power on her side, but Tobias was using speed and his own powers to make her attacks useless of ineffective while returning some strong blows him.

His presence did not go unnoticed as he stepped further into the room. Kusano, who was sitting perpendicular to Akitsu, noticed him out of the corner of her eye. The young girls eyes lit up like twin beacons in the night, a smile so wide you could land an airplane on it crossed her face, and her entire body seemed to radiate a joy that could not be contained.

It was absolutely adorable.

"Big brother!"

The tiny titan scrambled to get off Akitsu's lap and made a mad dash towards her 'big brother', her tiny arms open wide as if to engulf him in her embrace.  
Unfortunately for her, she was much to small to actually engulf him in a hug. That, and she only reached up to his knees, but she did manage to latch onto his left leg like some kind of adorable leech.

The tiny blond looked up at him with a big, bright smile, and Dante found it incredibly difficult not to return the look.

Bending down, he picked the littlest of his Sekirei up. Kusano allowed him to scoop her into his arms, and quickly latched her own tiny arms around his neck as he cradled her to him like a father would their child.

"Ku," Dante greeted, hesitating for only a moment before placing a kiss on her temple. The tiny titan giggled uncontrollably, her cheeks slightly flushed from the contact between them. "Have you been a good girl for big sis Akitsu?"

"Mmhmm!" Kusano nodded her head vigorously. "Ku's been a good girl."  
Dante lips turned themselves into a tiny half-grin at the girl's words. He would have responded to them, but before he could another voice spoke up.

"Husband, who is this?"

Dante felt like palming his face as he realized he that he had not only not introduced Tsukiumi to her sister Sekirei (kind of hard to do that when she's been unconscious since before they got to Izumo Inn), she also did not even know he had more than one Sekirei.

This was not good. How was he going to tell Tsukiumi that she was not his first Sekirei, or even his second, but his sixth without her going all 'tsun tsun' on him?

Wait.

Did she just call him husband?

Before Dante could open his mouth to ask her about his apparent new title, the jingling and clinking of chains alerted him to Akitsu's presence. He looked over to see the woman standing up from where she had been sitting on the veranda. She walked over to him with her slow methodical steps until she was standing in front of him, her head bowed deferentially.

"Ashikabi." She greeted.

Tsukiumi furrowed her brow.

"Ashikabi?"

"Akitsu," Dante greeted quickly, hoping to head off Tsukiumi's thought pattern by initiating a conversation with the white haired ice user. At the very least he wanted this conversation out of the way before his newest Sekirei starting tossing condensed balls of water at him again. "Was Ku any trouble?"

"Ah," Akitsu shook her head. "No."

"Aww!" Kusano gave Dantean irritated look that was far too adorable for her own good. "Ku already told big brother she was good!"

Dante chuckled a bit while a little ways behind him Miya gave a soft giggle.  
"Hey Dante. Why are you wet again?"

Tobias and Musubi had stopped sparring and Tobias walking towards them while Musubi kept going through the motions in shadow sparring. Tobias then spotted Tsukiumi behind him.

"Never mind, if I had to guess she nailed you with a water bomb." Tobias smirked. Dante scowled, confirming his theory.

"Husband!" Tsukiumi did not seem to like being ignored. Not that Dante was actually ignoring her, he just wasn't sure what to say to her that would allow him to avoid a potentially volatile situation yet, but it most definitely looked that way to her. "Who is this child that is clinging to you like some kind of leech? Who is this woman who calls you her Ashikabi? And who is this man?What is going on here!?"

Even if Dante were inclined to answer her question, which if he were honest he was not entirely sure how to answer, another interruption came in the form of a certain battle crazy Sekirei in shrine maiden clothing.

Musubi, who had previously been practicing outside still while Akitsu and Kusano watched on, had come inside the living room, presumably to see what the fuss was all about. The moment she saw Dante her face lit up in a way that was not dissimilar to the way Kusano's had.

Body of a woman, mind of a child. That was Musubi to a T.

"Dante!" The shrine maiden with an unhealthy love for combat ran up to the growing group of people with a bright smile. "I'm glad the landlady has finally let you come outside," Musubi began pouting, "I haven't been able to see you since you came back."

"I'm sorry, Musubi," Dante rubbed the back of his neck, not exactly sure what he should say in a situation like this. Would it be appropriate to reassure her? Or should he correct her and inform her that Miya hadn't technically let him out of him room, just decided it was pointless since all that meant was he and Uzume would be playing video games?

Seriously, this whole Ashikabi business was starting to become a headache. Or maybe he was just over thinking things.

"It's fine," Musubi waved off his apology with a bright smile. "I'm just glad I can see you again."

It was very hard for Dante not to return the excited girls smile. He could literally feel her happiness radiating outward from their bond. Her joy at just seeing him was so profound there were simply no words to describe it. Dante doubted there would be anyone in the world who could see that smile and not be affected.

Well, Dante could name at least one person who did not seem to be affected.

"Husband," Tsukiumi ground out in anger. Her eyes flickered from the black haired male to the three 'new girls' that surrounded him. "Who are these...these...people?"

"Who is this, Dante?" asked a curious Musubi. She was, of course, asking about Tsukiumi.

Dante was actually very glad for the opening she had unwittingly given him.  
"This is Tsukiumi," Dante introduced said woman, who currently had her arms crossed under her bust and was giving Musubi an imperious glare while she tried to figure out the shrine maiden's connection to him. "She's the number zero nine. You know, the one I've been dreaming about."

"Ah!" Musubi gasped in both surprise and excitement. It didn't last long, but for just a second, Dante could have sworn sparkles appeared within the girl's eyes as she she looked between him and Tsukiumi. "Then, then, is she your newest Sekirei?"

Dante shifted a bit.

"Yes."

"This is great!" Musubi crowed, her left hand clenching into a fist as she pumped it into the air. It was not unexpected, but it seemed like Musubi was even more excited about Dante adding another female to his flock than he was. "You've got another one! And a single digit too!"

"Another one?" There was a tremor in Tsukiumi's voice, one that promised violence. A quick look at the blond haired Sekirei showed that the expression on her face matched the tone of her voice to a T. Her eyes were twitching quite violently, and several strands of her long hair was swaying in an unseen breeze. For a moment, Dante wondered if she was manipulating the water molecules within the air to accomplish such a feet with her hair. "Husband, do you mean to tell me that I am not your first?"

"No," Dante sighed, there really was no right way to answer this, and it seemed that delaying tactics would no longer work. Best to just get this situation over with and hope for the best. "You are not."

"I see," her lips twitching like she wanted to peel them back from her teeth to snarl at him, Tsukiumi continued her questioning. "And aside from me, just how many Sekirei do you have?"

"He's got four. And nice to meet you, my name is Tobias."

"Four?" Tsukiumi didn't seem to register the rest of Tobias's sentence before turning back to Dante.

The twitching of Tsukiumi's eyes became even more pronounced as, without warning, she raised her hand towards Dante, water gathering around her palm like streamers.

"Water Celebration!"

Two times in one day. The universe must really hate him right now.

Dinner that day was a very interesting affair. Not to say that it wasn't always interesting. With so many different people with different personalities coming together to share a meal with each other, dinner was always an interesting (and very loud) affair. But today, dinner was even more interesting than usual.

The reason for this could easily be attributed to Tsukiumi, Sekirei number zero nine, the water Sekirei, and the newest member of Dante's increasingly large harem.

Increasingly large harem. Even now, that term was something Dante would have never believed could apply to him. They were just words that had never held any meaning. While other males might find the idea of a harem awesome, he just never cared. What would he need a harem for anyways

They would just die less than a hundred years from now.

It was funny how life worked out. The one person who would never want a harem was one of the few people who had somehow found himself acquiring multiple female partners. Ridiculously hot female partners that came from another planet, had supernatural powers, and were currently fighting in some kind of strange game being run by a madman.

Dante turned his head slightly to look at Tsukiumi. She was sitting directly on his left, a place where Musubi or Akitsu would normally sit depending on what day it was. Today the water user had taken that spot.

Though taken might be a bit of an understatement in this instance. The blond female had practically demanded the right to sit next to him. Of course, being who she was, Musubi had agreed that it was only right since Tsukiumi was the newest Sekirei to their family. Akitsu just hadn't felt like arguing, though Dante got the distinct impression that the silent woman had been tempted to impale Tsukiumi with a large spear of ice.

Tsukiumi was eating the food he had prepared with a regal grace that was offset by just how fast she was eating. Seriously, so far every Sekirei he met seemed capable of putting away nearly twice their body weight in food. Even Kusano ate like it was going out of style!

She was also glaring at Kagari with a narrowed gaze as said fire user sat directly across from her, eating his own meal at a sedate pace whilst trying to ignore the eyes that were drilling into his head. He wasn't doing a very good job.

"Can I help you?" asked Kagari with a sigh after finishing another bite of food, obviously no longer able to ignore the glaring woman sitting across from him.

"You..." Tsukiumi muttered, her eyes narrowing even further as she leaned forward slightly, as if doing so would help her observe the white haired fire user better. "You look very familiar..." she continued slowly, her words causing Kagari to nearly choke on the air he had just inhaled. "Have we met before?"  
Kagari coughed several times, each time banging a fist against his chest as he tried to dislodge something that wasn't even there from within his throat, while Jenny patted him on the back. After a moment he seemed to regain control over his lungs and quickly turned his head away from the water user nervously.

"I can't say that we have," he replied in a neutral, careful voice.

Tsukiumi narrowed her eyes at him, looking unsure for a second while Dante slowly moved to the side. In his years he had learned that situations like this, the truth would come out sooner or later. And if it was later the reaction would be a lot more violent.

Considering Tsukiumi was also a tsundere, those chances increased very high.  
Tsukiumi continued to stare at Kagari for several more seconds. The Sekirei being stared at just tried to ignore the look as much as possible, though Dante thought the pale skinned fire user looked a tad nervous. After a moment or two longer, Tsukiumi leaned back, seemingly satisfied with her observations.

"I suppose not," she said at last, before picking up her bowl of rice and a set of chopsticks. Kagari sighed in relief before picking up the steaming cup of tea near his plate. "Though you do look familiar, the one I am thinking of is a man that wears a mask."

Kagari sighed slightly in relief, thankful this situation was averted until later.

"So, Tsukiumi, tells us about yourself," Tobias decided to try and break the ice. "How long have you been searching for your Ashikabi?"

"I wasn't searching. I simply wandered about this city until those three hounds attacked me." Tsukiumi said coldly.

Tobias seemed surprised at her tone. "No need to bite my head off, I was just trying to make conversation."

"Don't take it personally, she's like that with most people." Kagari offered.

"How do you know that?"

Kagari seemed to realize his slip up and said, "Uh,uh..."

Musubi then ruined his failing attempt to cover his mistake.

"Because he's a Sekirei too." The excitable fist type Sekirei told her cheerfully.

Dante face palmed. His Sekirei gave the term 'motor mouth' a whole new meaning.

The table went mostly silent as most eyes went to Musubi, then Tsukiumi. Her eyes were fixated on Kagari again, her eyes narrowed while Kagari was slightly sweating. Then Tsukiumi's eyes went wide with recognition.

"Hourma."

Knowing the jig was up, the Sekirei in question slowly nodded. The result from Tsukiumi was what Dante expected.

"Water Celebration!"

The blast of water fire at Kagari but just before it touched the blast was redirected, bending like it was hitting a shield before collapsing into a ball of water behind the white haired Sekirei.

"What?" Tsukiumi looked shocked at what had happened until Tobias spoke up.

"Any particular reason your trying to soak him?" He asked while the ball of water floated over to him and floated just over his head.

Tsukiumi gave Tobias a glare. "Do not interfere, this is between me and him."  
Tobias frowned. "It's became everyone's business at this table the second you tried to attack him. Now spill. Or do you want to be soaked?"

To prove his point, Tobias split the water into several small balls using his own air powers to make solid air around it, before surrounding Tsukiumi with them.

Dante felt like the situation was getting out of hand and decided to put a stop to it.

"Tsukiumi, calm down. And Tobias, stop manipulating her powers and just send the water outside. You know well enough that there is no violence rule here."

Tobias didn't look happy, but he did what Dante asked and sent the balls of water through the window into the garden. Tsukiumi however, didn't move from standing.

"Tsukiumi, sit please."

She turned and said, "Husband, I have matters with this man that-"

She was then cut off as Dante released his killing intent, the darkness filling the room and seemingly robbing all sound.

Ku and Musubi hugged each other tightly in fear, as well as Uzume and Chiho, who burrowed herself into her Sekirei's bosom. Akitsu had stiffened and a mist was forming around her, while Matsu hid herself behind the ice user. Kazehana was gripping Tobias's neck in fear, failing to notice she was slowly cutting off his air while doing so and he was turning blue. Kagari was pale while the only people seemingly unaffected were Jenny and Miya, both looking calmly at the darkness as the chains formed.

Tsukiumi was the worst off, due to the fact Dante was focused on her. She was pale, shaking, and her eyes showed terror as she looked at her Ashikabi while he smiled pleseantly.

"Tsukiumi," he asked sweetly with a 'Miya smile' on his face, while the chains rattled menacingly behind him. "Please sit."

She didn't dare argue and immediately sat down, not taking away her gaze. Dante 'smiled' again before releasing the darkness, letting everyone breath easier while Tobias was able to pry off Kazehana's arms and suck in air again, rubbing his raw throat.

"Now, you two have history clearly. Kagari, care to explain?"

Kagari flinched at being adressed, still recovering from Dante's illusion, before sighing.

"Me and Tsukiumi ran into each other several times around the city. She was very... insistent for a fight."

"Why?" Tobias wheezed out, still rubbing his throat. Who knew Kazehana had such a strong grip?

"She always said she was strongest..."

That phrase snapped Tsukiumi out of her daze and she huffed.

"Because I am the strongest," she declared, crossing her arms under her chest.  
"And rude." Jenny noted, making a tick mark appear on Tsukiumi's head.

"I beg your pardon?" She said indignantly.

"Kagari was still talking, now let him finish."

"Thank you Jenny, now..." He started talking again before Tsukiumi could voice her objections. "Anyways, she challenged me to fights all the time, trying to prove she was stronger then me, and could be the strongest without a Sekirei. Needless to say, I beat her every time."

"You make it sound like I wasn't a worthy fighter!" Tsukiumi sounded outraged.

"I didn't say that. I just said I beat you every time. But admittedly you were a handful."

Uzume smirked. "Try saying that again and think about it..."

The second the star shirted Sekirei said that, most people thought, then Tsukiumi and Kagari both blushed.

"I did not mean it like that!" Kagari said to Jenny, looking panicked.  
Uzume and Dante chuckled. "Nice one." Dante snickered, giving Uzume a high five across the table.

"Oh my, things are certainly getting lively." Miya smiled, sipping from her tea.  
The conversation then grounded to a halt as Kagari's phone rang, playing a generic ringtone.

"Kagari, I believe I've said that electronics at the table are forbidden." Miya said with a disapproving look on her face as Kagari took it out and looked at the caller ID.

"Sorry Miya, it's work. I need to take this. Excuse me."

Kagari got up from the table and left the room, closing the door behind him. Dante had a sneaking suspicion he knew who that call was from.

"Excuse me. Bathroom break."

Dante wiped his mouth with his napkin before leaving the room, closing the door. The second he did, he ran up to his room and went straight to his laptop, typing away at it before a program opened. Then two names popped up on the program. Kagari and Takami Sahashi.

_"Hello?"_ Kagari's voice said.

_"We need to talk."_ The voice of Takami responded.

_"I'm in the middle of dinner, I can't just leave right now. Dante somehow..."_

_"Managed to wing number 09, we know. That's why we need to talk."_

Silence, then,_ "I can't leave right now, but I should be able to tonight."_

_"Good. Same place, same time. Don't be late."_

_"See you then."_

Both hung up and Dante leaned back, finger to his lip and eyes narrowed, thinking. MBI was taking a larger and larger intrest in his life. It would be fine if he was a regular guy, who had somehow gained 5 Sekirei and allies whom trusted him, but he was not a regular guy. He was a time traveling universe jumper who had too much time on his hands and nothing to do tonight.

"Well, let's crash a party then." Dante shrugged, closing his laptop.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Kagari walked down the street before stopping at the corner where he was supposed to be picked up by Takami. It had been easy to get out of the house, but for some reason harder to leave his bed.

Maybe because Jenny was sleeping in it.

"What is wrong with me?" Kagari sighed, rubbing his forehead. Ever since bonding with Jenny, Kagari found himself wanting to spend more and more time with her.

He liked her. He admitted that much. But he had never seen himself finding an Ashikabi. He just...hadn't wanted one. Not because he hated them or despised humans, he just never saw himself like that, what with him defending Unwinged Sekirei all the time.

Then the next thing he knew, Dante had introduced him to Jenny and everything was turned upside down. He started reacting, denied reaction, nearly got burnt to a crisp and then winged by her.

Now he had an Ashikabi who he liked, and who seemed to like him. It was a mess.

Sighing again, Kagari took out his pack of cigarettes. He pulled one out and stuck it in his mouth. Just before he lit it...

**"Mind if I have a smoke?"**

Kagari almost swallowed his cancer stick in shock and whirled around. Dante was standing there waving his hand, decked out in his armor.

**"Morning Kagari."**

"What the...? Dante, what're you...?"

**"Well, I happened to hear that you were meeting with someone tonight, and I had nothing better to do so I figured 'hey, why not tag along?'"**

"You were spying on me!?" Kagari was shocked and angry that Dante had done such a thing.

**"Oooohhhhh, spying is such an ugly word. More like... 'household security.'"**

Kagari frowned and was about to speak before Dante interrupted.

**"Besides, I figured it was about time for me to introduce myself to Takami Sahashi."**

Kagari closed his mouth, then opened it, then closed. This went on for half a minute before...

"You know about her?"

**"You would not believe the things I know. But, back to the point, can I have a smoke?"**

Not sure what else to do, Kagari took out another cigarette and handed it to Dante. Said teen took it while taking off the face part of his mask.

"I didn't know you smoked."

"I don't really, just when I'm really, really, stressed." Dante admitted. "Can I get a light?"

Holding his index finger out and lighting it, Kagari lit Dante's cig first, then his own.

The two stood side by side, smoking and waiting.

"So, what's on your mind?" Dante asked.

"What'd you mean?"

Dante glanced at his friend. "I can tell when someone's stressed, and I heard you say 'what's wrong with me?' So what's eating at you?"

Taking a breath in then breathing out smoke, Kagari sighed.

"Jenny."

"What about her?"

"I'm conflicted. I never really wanted an Ashikabi. Not like Tsukiumi, I don't hate or despise them, but... I don't know. I just never really thought about getting one."

"And then Jenny showed up, right?"

"Yep. Then I reacted and I was...unsure what to do."

"Ok..."

Kagari looked up at the moon, the light seemingly rippling through his hair as he did. "I was asked to be a guardian of Unwinged Sekirei. And I thought if I was winged by Jenny..."

"She wouldn't let you go on doing that."

Kagari grimaced and nodded. He then felt a pat on the shoulder.

"Kagari, let me tell you a bit about Jenny."

Glancing at the teen, Dante explained, looking up as well.

"Jenny was born during a war. Her mom was a soilder. Jenny grew up with the idea being a soilder was a good thing, an honorable thing. But her father, he hated war. Not one bit. That put them at odds with each other. She was a fighter, rushing in head first to battle. He tried to think of another way, something other then fighting."

"He ended the war. Made both sides see reason. But one of the commanders, he was consumed with rage for the enemy. He tried to shoot her father for trying to stop the war. Jenny, she took the shot for him. Nearly killed her. In fact, she was clinically dead."

Kagari felt like the breath was knocked out of him when Dante said that.

"So. What to do? Here his daughter is shot, and to everyone else's point of view, killed her. And the man who did it was angry and held down. He had a gun, so, what did he do? He'd already been a father before, but he lost everything to...another war. Bigger, more violent, much longer, but war. And the man who wouldn't see past his hate, killed her. So, her father took the gun, and put it to her killers head."

"Now, no one would've blamed him. His daughter had been killed, right in front of him, in front of everyone! He could've pulled the trigger, no one would've blamed him."

"But he didn't?" Kagari guessed from the way Dante was going on.

"He didn't. And he told them he never would. He said to both sides,'When you make a society, where both sides are equal, remember...one man, never would.' Then after that, he left. There was nothing else to do. The two sides asked for the privilege of giving Jenny a proper burial. A peace offering between the two. He agreed and after he left...well, the details aren't important right now. What was important Jenny wasn't dead. And ever since that day, she remembered what her father had told her. 'Theres always another way.' And she's spent almost every day of her life, fighting to protect people."

Dante smiled at Kagari. "So don't worry about your position as the guardian of Unwinged Sekirei. Not only would Jenny let you do it, she'd want to help."

Kagari smiled at Dante and nodded. "Thank you Dante. I needed that."

"No problem. Now..." Dante flicked his cigarette away and placed his face mask back on. **"...I believe our ride is here."**

Looking down the street, Kagari spotted the same limo from before coming towards them. His face turned from reassured to serious.

Once the car came to a stop, the window rolled down and Takami look through the crack, looking irritated.

"Kagari, I said to come alone. Why did you bring him?"

**" 'He' has a name, thank you. And Kagari didn't bring me, I followed him. Takami Sahashi."**

Takami looked at Dante sharply. "How do you...?"

**"Not important. Now, can we come in or not?"**

Clearly unhappy, Takami opened the door and let both of them come in. The second the door closed, the car silently pulled away from the curb and started driving away.

Dante pulled off his helmet and put down his hood, showing a smirk on his face.

"Nice limo. The seats are Corinthian leather I believe."

Takami seemed surprised. "How did you know that?"

"Oh, I'm very good with details. For example..." Dante pointed a Kagari. "His hair is naturally white, he's a light smoker, he favors his left when he's using his powers, and he can only use fire so well before he gets drained and unable to use his powers for ten minutes."

Takami snorted. "You live with him, you'd know all this already."

"Fine. Give me a challange then. Name anything, I'll tell you what I can about it."

Takami scoffed then said, "Fine, how about me?"

Dante's smirk widened. "All right them. Let's see..."

He leaned forwards and rested his head on his hand, looking her over while she looked back challenging. Kagari shifted slightly in the tense atmosphere.

"You're a scientist." Dante finally said.

"Well done. Shall I call the newspapers?" The woman smirked condescendingly, but Dante ignored her.

"The dress you're wearing is made of black silk, purchased about 8 months ago. That scar on you face is recent, made by something thin, but extremely sharp. You're stressed most of the time, as shown by the wrinkles under your eyes that you try to cover with make up. The stress is due to...three?...no, wait, yes three things. Firstly...would be... The Sekirei plan."

Takami's smirk was slowly fading as Dante went on.

"Your stressed because of having to monitor and take care of 108 Sekirei, all of whom are in this city. They're fighting, with the losers being deactivated and needing pickup to be reprogrammed, held and kept safe. The Sekirei are also the source of the second reason of stress, the game master, your boss, Minaka Hiroto."

"He's unpredictable at the moment, frantic and excited by the plans progression, but that's not the real reason he's so worked up. No, no, the cause is something smaller, something more puzzling to him. Or three something's. Three people he can't find, three unique people who don't exist, two of whom clearly have powers beyond human limits but are Ashikabi, so they can only be humans. But that doesn't add up."

"Stop it." Takami said flatly, but Dante wasn't listening now. He was off in his own world while he gazed out into space now.

"And Minaka's the entire reason for number three. I see two people, a girl and a boy. Both have black hair and one is an...oh, interesting. She's an Ashikabi."

"Dante, stop it." Kagari said urgently, seeing Takami starting to pale.

"But more then that, she's your daughter. And she's Ashikabi to a specific number. Number...107, Shina. He's a interesting Sekirei, he cares for her, but he's desperate to find someone else. His sister and friend, Kusano. My Sekirei."

"And the boy, he's not an Ashikabi, but he's a normal boy. Smart, determined, but he's also degrading on himself. And yet somehow managed to flunk his college entrance exams twice. But his story goes deeper, he never knew his father."

"Stop it." Takami said more forcibly, but Dante was almost finished. He just had a few more things to add.

"You were married. The ring is gone, but the skin is lighter where the ring was, leaving behind a scar almost from it. Let's see, you... Left him?...no. No,no,no, you rejected him. You threw him out of your life, blocked out all traces of him from your son who doesn't know his father is..."

"Stop it!" Takami screamed, suddenly panicked but Dante finished his sentence.

"...Minaka Hiroto." Dante finished, finally looking at the woman.

She looked frightened and asked shakily, "Who are you?"

Dante gave a flat smile. "I'm a man who doesn't exist, who has done things no human should've been able to do. I'm a mystery, an anomaly in this equation that doesn't fit in. But I'm so much more."

He then leaned forwards, his eyes seemingly dancing with fire. "I'm something that can't be controlled, can't be anticipated. I've seen things that could make you stare in awe, know things that could make you weep with joy or despair, I've done things that could make you scream with terror for the rest of you life or drive you insane. I have the power to destroy everything or save it. I am not a god, but I am not entirely human, I don't belong in this time, yet I exist everywhere and when. But the real question I'm here to ask is this... What will you do, now that you know what I know?" Dante finished in a deadly whisper.

The silence was deafening in the car. Dante slowly leaned back into his seat. "But I didn't come here tonight just to make it clear I'm not someone to mess with. I had a few other things in mind."

Takami swallowed, her throat suddenly parched. Everyone had been interested in Dante for a while now, but what he had just done was impossible. Nobody knew about Minaka and their former relationship. She had done everything possible to destroy any connections that she could find or think of. But Dante had known. How?

"I came here with a few things in mind. Firstly was the situation regarding your daughter."

"What about her?" The white haired woman asked, trying to get back her mask of calm.

"Don't play games with me Takami, I just made it very clear they don't work. Your daughter was recently captured by Higa Izumi and is currently being held hostage in his building to force number 107 Shina to do his dirty work, much like he did with my friend Uzume."

Takami winced slightly before her face hardened. That was true unfortunately. Her daughter Yukari was kidnaped by the Ashikabi of the East and being used as leverage against Shina. It was another reason she cursed Minaka for starting this dangerous and foolish plan. It had dragged in her family.

"What of it?"

Dante smirked slightly. "You're aware of the fact that me and my friends recently freed Chiho, Uzume's Ashikabi, from Higa's hospital using tactics and skills that clearly show we're not normal, nor to be underestimated. Which brings me to the reason I brought this up."

Dante leaned forwards and said, "I'm willing to offer my help in freeing her, for two reasons and a favor you'll owe me."

"Why? And what favor?" Takami narrowed her eyes. She had dealt with many important figures in her life and she knew politics well enough to smell out an ulterior motive.

"In that order. One reason is because that's the sort of person I am. I'm not a monster, despite what you people of MBI may think. I help people who need it and deserve it, regardless of where they come from, what they did or do, and who they are. If they are my friends or people I know well, then that's all the more reason. The second reason is because Yukari is Shina's Ashikabi. Shina is a brother in everything but blood to Kusano. She's worried about him and therefore, so am I. Plus, I know he's currently confused yet worried about Yukari and her feelings regarding him. I want to reassure him and show he matters to her."

"Oh, is that all?" Takami snorted.

"Well, I also dislike kidnaping backstabbing bastards who use people to further their own desires."

"What's the favor I would owe you?"

Dante smirked deeply now.

"Well, now that's where it gets interesting. I know you're the chief researcher of Sekirei and their bodies. Correct?"

"Yes..."

"Well, I'm a bit a researcher myself. But I narrowed myself to the Sekirei crest and it's function in the game. Imagine my surprise when I found out it was the control center for nanobots that were swimming through my Sekirei's bloodstream."

"What!?" Both Takami and Kagari shouted, Kagari particularly shocked. Nanobots inside Dante's Sekirei?

"And I easily cracked their coding. The nanobots act as locators of Sekirei, and an deadman switch. These nanobots are controlled by a computer system that is completely isolated from any outside interference, located in the deepest possible level underneath the MBI headquarters building. It can only be accessed by two people in the entire company. In short, you or that deluded game master could easily shut down any who try to escape the city or break the rules."

"How did you know about that?" That was the greatest protected secret of the Sekirei plan, and as such, no documentation of either the hidden room or the system existed anywhere, wheather on paper or digital files. Nobody could know about it unless they were told.

Dante had broken out into a full blown grin as he tapped his nose.  
"Trade secret. But all in good time. Now, these pesky nanobots are ingenious, I admit that, but I'm very, very talented when it comes to computers and their code. Someone like me could easily render the nanobots inert, but that would be far too much attention on me. Attention I don't need."

"So what do you want with me?"

"Simply put, I want my Sekirei's and my friend's Sekirei's nanobots turned off. Not entirely, just the dead man switch. Everything else is perfectly reasonable considering the game were currently caught up in. So to sum it up, I would be getting your daughter out from under Higa's thumb, in exchange, when I contact you, I would want the dead man switches disabled."

Takami's mind whirred a mile a minute. This was serious. Dante had discovered the nanobots, someone nobody with anything short of an electron microscope should've been able to find, and apparently cracked their extensive coding to discover their functions. That implied Dante was far smarter then they thought or had friends in places she could never touch. Both options were in no way good. Secondly, he could get her daughter out to safety, but in exchange, he'd want to have his Sekirei freed.

"This is a very serious matter." She thought out loud, trying to stall and think of a way out. "How do I know you wouldn't use this to your advantage to escape the city?"

Dante frowned deeply.

"I believe I made it perfectly clear earlier that I don't run when people need help. Others might, but I'm not leaving the rest of the 108 Sekirei and Ashikabi's to fight to the death in a twisted game. And you're stalling."

Takami cursed inwardly as she realized she was backed into a corner and sighed.

"Very well. But I'm only doing this because I hate Minaka and don't want any needless deaths or deactivations."

"All these deaths and deactivations are needless," Dante replied flatly. "But I'm glad you agreed. And per our agreement, I'll rescue your daughter." He looked out the window. "Let us out here please."

The car pulled over then and both Dante and Kagari got out Dante's mask and hood back on. Dante turned around before closing the door.

**"Also, I want you to give a certain Sekirei a message."**

"Which one and what?"

**"The leader of the Displinary Squad, number 04, Karasuba. And the message: number 08, Yume."**

Dante closed the door on Takami's shocked face and the car drove silently away, leaving the two men standing silently on the side of the street.  
Kagari was looking at Dante in a whole new light now. He not only knew things that were clearly heavily guarded secrets, but had pushed Takami into a corner and practically forced her to do something for him.

**"You going to keep gawking at me or say something?"**

Kagari jumped at being adressed and said, "Sorry, but what you just did there...that was..."

**"Normal for me. I've been at this for a long time Kagari. And that was nothing new."**

That didn't answer much about Dante, just brought up more questions. He was about to ask but Dante cut him off.

**"Like I've told Matsu, I'll tell you all who and what I am soon, but be patient with me. Now, I feel like going on patrol again. I'll see you in the morning."**

"Do you want me to come with?"

**"No, just head home. Jenny will be worried if you aren't there when she wakes up."**

Kagari looked off towards the inn, thinking maybe Dante was right.

"Maybe you're right, but call me if..."

Kagari was cut off because when he turned back to face Dante, he was gone. Not a trace was left, leaving the Sekirei standing in the dark and looking at the spot Dante had used to be in surprise.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

Landing on top of one of the taller buildings in the north, Dante looked around and took in the view, thinking.

The talk with Takami had gone as well as he could hope. He made a deal with her to rescue her daughter in exchange for her turning off the deadman switches when he contacted her. But something was gnawing at him.

He had learned years ago that while his arrival and interference in a universe caused radical changes, time was also resilenant. It tried to flow in what should've been it's already predetermined path. And if he ws right, soon two people were going to come to him with a very big request. One that would have devastating consequences.

**_Beep Beep_**

Dante was snapped from his thoughts as his mask sounded, alerting him to something. He blinked and a screen was pulled up that showed a street map with two dots. One was red, indicating Dante's position, the other was blue and it was moving eracticly. One minute it would be in one place, the next at least a block from its previous position, there was no linear travel or tracable path at all. Almost like they were...

**"Interesting. Computer, analyze target for energy signatures, then cross reference energy signature with those in the database."** Dante ordered while jumping off the building and free fell. He then landed on one building and started running towards the other target.

_"Energy singnature analyzed. Cross referencing..."_ The mask reported in his ear while Dane split his attention between the map and where he was going.

_"Energy identified."_

**"And what is it?"**

_"Signature is 89% similar to the energy used for shadow manipulation."_

Dante digested that for a minute. Shadow manipulation. Well, the only thing that could have something like that was...

**"Computer, access Matsu's computer base."**

_"Accessing... Connected."_

Dante stopped for a minute as several profiles were pulled up, blocking his view of where he was going.

**"Now, cut any Sekirei who don't use powers of any sort."**

Several Sekirei profiles were cut, but there was still a large number left.

**"Now cut Sekirei who have been winged."** It was a good call that whoever was running was unwinged, given the fact they were moving quickly and stopping from time to time before running again. The numbers were cut down considerably and now only a handful were left.

**"Now, search for Sekirei who have shadow like powers among the remaining possibilities."**

_"Match found."_

**"Pull up the file."**

A picture then appeared of a dark-skinned Sekirei with jet black hair and light purple eyes.

_"Sekirei file number 57. Yahan. Abilities on file show she has the ability to teleport using shadows. She is also a skilled fighter and weapon of choice is a curved dagger."_

Dante frowned. Those abilities would make Yahan a target for any other Ashikabi in the game. It also explained why she hadn't been forcibly winged by now.

**"Computer, are there any cameras in Yahan's current location?"**

_"Affirmative."_

**"Connect me to them and run a facial recognition check on anybody in her area."**

A few seconds later, a feed for a traffic camera popped up in the feed. The street was deserted for a second before two figures burst from an alley and skidded to a stop, facing each other.

Yahan was facing the camera while the other was just out of the cameras range. But from what Dante could see, Yahan was having a difficult time fighting. Her clothes, which comprised of a bikini top beneath a small hooded shawl, a buckled sarong, and leather knee-high boots, were all slightly torn and he spotted multiple scratches, some of which were bleeding. She was also panting heavily, holding a knife in one of her hands.

**"Are there any other cameras for a better angle?"**

_"Negative."_

Dante chewed his lip, thinking. He could easily take down the fighter, the problem was Yahan might assume he was an enemy as well.

Then Dante's attention was draw back to the video. Yahan has turned and was running, forcing her oppentent to come into view as they chased after her. Her face wasn't seen, but he recognized that uniform and the string like weapons.

**"Mikogami!" **Dante snarled.

All doubt pushed aside, Dante knelt down before blasting off from the roof with enough power to crack it deeply, going as fast as possible to help.

_Back at the inn_

The place was silent as everyone, as even Miya and the ever working hacker Matsu were asleep. But in one of the rooms, someone wasn't as peaceful.

Tobias was grumbling and his brow was furrowed in his sleep. He might've been tossing and turning if Kazehana, wearing one of his shirts, wasn't holding onto him tightly. The reason Tobias was troubled was due to what he ws currently dreaming.

_Tobias was running through the city as fast as he could. He didn't know why, but something was shouting at him to run, as fast as he could, urging him on. And it was realistic. He could feel the wind and clothes on his skin, smell the night air, hear his heart beating, and also feel himself using his powers to hurry himself along._

_Tobias stopped and looked around. He was standing in the middle of a street intersection and it was quite. But the street lights were off, casting the entire area in shadow.  
Looking around, Tobias saw nothing, but something had him on edge. Something he couldn't...pin...down..._

_"Hello there." A females voice purred behind him._

_Whirling around, Tobias was about to blast whoever had just spoken but stopped when he saw...nothing?_

_"What the hell?" Tobias muttered. He had definantly heard someone._

_He then heard something and jerked around, but again there was nothing there. The sound of air moving started sounding all around him._

_"I was wondering what you looked like." The females voice said playfully, but somehow it was echoing._

_"And who are you?" Tobias closed his eyes and sent out an Air Pulse to search._

_"Oh, someone intrested in you."_

_"Why?"_

_"A few reasons. The fact you're an Ashikabi is the main one. What's your name?"_

_"Tobias."_

_Tobias jerked his head as he 'saw' her and grabbed her with his powers._

_"Interesting. Not many can catch me Tobias." The voice sounded impressed._

_"I'm not most people. Now let's see who you are." Tobias yanked the person towards him, determined to find out who was messing with him._

_"Not yet."_

_Tobias was shocked as he felt whoever it was he had grabbed dissapear from his grasp._

_"What?"_

_This didn't make sense. This may be a dream, but regardless, not many people could slip out of his grasp once he had them. And she hadn't even slipped out. She had just...dissapered. Gone._

_"I'm not easily pinned down." The female purred. Right into his ear._

_Spinning around again, Tobias finally saw who it was and while under most circumstances he might have be embarrassed with how she was dressed, right now he was too busy being on guard and in his fighting stance._

_"Well, I suppose there were worse choices available." She noted, looking Tobias up and down with a smile. "But I'm rather pleased with mine."_

_Tobias narrowed his eyes. "No more games. Who are you?" To get his point across Tobias started making the winds swirl and howl, flapping their clothing and hair._

_The girls smile widened._

_"Number 57 Yahan. Your new Sekirei."_

With a gasp Tobias's eyes snapped open.

_Back with Dante_

**"Damn they're fast. How much further?"**

_"Approximately 2 blocks north."_

Dante had been chasing after the two Sekirei for the past ten minutes, trying to catch up. Normally he would've been their sooner but the armor, even though it was light weight, restricted s movements enough to slow him when it came to roof running.

_"You have an incoming call."_

**"What? From who?"** It was the middle of the night, who the hell would be calling?

_"Phone number is regesteried as Tobias cell."_

Tobias? What did he want now?

**"Accept the call."**

"Dante?"

Because the call was taking place inside his helmet, Dante's voice scrambler wouldn't work on the call unless he wanted it to, so his voice was normal as he replied.

"Tobias, what do you want, I'm in the middle of something!"

"So am I!" Tobias's retort was hushed, indicating he was inside and trying not to wake anyone.

"What could be so important that..."

"I had a reaction dream!"

That surprised Dante and he stopped on the next building to talk properly. He was in a rush, but he could spare a minute at best.

"You did?"

"Yes!"

"Ok, I'm the middle of something important right now, so talk fast. What did they look like?"

"Girl, dark skin, black clothes, said her number was 57 and her name was..."

"Yahan?"

There was a surprised pause before Tobias said suspiciously, "How did you know that?"

"No time! I got to go!"

Dante hung up before Tobias could reply and started roof jumping again. If Yahan was reacting, then it only added to her problems. Reacting to Tobias would mean she wasn't fully focused and that would prove deadly for her if he didn't stop Mitsuki.  
He arrived just in time to hear a female voice angrily shout, "Leave me alone!"

"Not a chance! If Master Mikogami says he wants you brought back, then you are coming with me!"

Mitsuki's voice was clearly agraravated and Dante heard the sound of metal against metal followed by a **_whoosh_**.

"Your _Master_ Mikogami is a monster who forcibly wings Sekirei! I will not be a lapdog for that disgusting excuse of a human!"

Dante stopped on top of a building and looked down at the fight. Yahan and Mitsuki were fighting, dagger vs strings, a dance of steel. Mitsuki's strings were all around her and darting forwards towards Yahan, who was standing under a street lamp and looked worse. Before she had a few scrathes from what he could see in the video earlier. She had a few long and deep cuts on her arms, two on her left leg near the thigh, and one on her right ribs. She was panting heavily and was clearly exhausted. Despite that, she was using a long and curved dagger, combined with impressive reflexes and flexibility to dodge and block the strings being sent at her.

Yahan tried back away from Mitsuki, but before she could, Mitsuki sent her strings behind Yahan and attacked, forcing her to turn and block them.

"Nice try, but I know now you need shadows to escape using that weird ability. If you think I'm letting you get away, think again." Mitsuki said smugly.

Yahan snarled in anger, but she couldn't do anything surrounded like she was. Any options she had were bad options. If she tried to jump out, she'd be caught easily. If she threw her knife to try and break the light, she'd still be caught, and without a weapon if she missed. And clearly the shadows the strings were casting were far too small to use for her ability. That meant she'd keep being attacked until she was too tired to fight back.

Dante decided to intervene now. If Tobias was this Sekirei's Ashikabi, and it sounded like she was, then he definantly wasn't going to let her get taken from her real Ashikabi. So Dante jumped over the edge, braced his feet just before he began to fall, and pushed off, sending himself rocketing towards the pair and having his right fist cocked to punch.  
Hearing his cloak flapping in the wind, both of them looked up. Mitsuki's eyes widened as she Dante about to crash into her and leaped back, dodging Dante's punch as it missed and instantly rose a cloud of dust and a loud crack.

The cloud cleared to show Dante kneeling and his armored fist embedded in the concrete. He yanked it out easily and turned to face the string wielding Sekirei, who looked angry.

"Who the hell are you?" She shouted.

Dante smirked under his mask and said hurtfuly, **"Aw. You don't recognize me Mitsuki? After all, you saw me not that long ago."**

Mitsuki narrowed her eyes and shifted cautiously. This guy...he did sound familiar. But where...then it hit her.

"You're that guy who took out Yomi!"

Dante chuckled and shook his head. **"I am, but that's not the event I meant. We met on a rooftop...I was using a bow and arrows..."**

Mitsuki went paler then a corpse and she looked shaky on her feet.

"You...?" She said shakily.

Yahan in the meantime was completely lost. She had been running from this Sekirei for the past few hours. At first it hadn't been that bad, but as the fight/chase went on, Yahan had started getting tired and getting hurt. Not much at first, but she had been getting slower and slower, resulting in more injuries. She had also been reacting to someone, so she wasn't one hundred percent focused. Then she had been cornered under a street lamp so she couldn't use her shadow powers anymore, and almost caught. Now some guy in a suit of armor came from nowhere that the enemy Sekirei apparently knew and feared if her reaction was anything to go by.

**"Yes, me,"** Yahan was yanked from her thoughts as the man started talking again, his back to her and focused on the other girl. **"Now, unless you have a death wish and want to go the same way as your sister..."** Two **_SNIKK_** were heard as two short blades came from his gauntlets and were ignited with fire. **"Leave."**

Mitsuki needed no further encouragement as she turned and ran, leaping off buildings and vanishing from sight in seconds.

Sighing, Dante turned to look at Yahan. The girl was looking at him cautiously and had a firm grip on her dagger in her right hand despite her clear exhaustion. Dante's mask scanned her and informed him that aside from the cuts, she also had a fractured left rib and her tendons in her right hand were stressed to the point of snapping.

**"Hello there." **Dante decided to get the ball rolling since Yahan didn't seem particularly chatty right now.

"Who are you?"

Dante pulled off his mask and let Yahan see his face.

"Well, I've been called many things. The names you might be familiar with are the Ashikabi of the North and Miracle Worker."

Yahan looked surprised as she said, "You're the Miracle Worker?"

Dante nodded. "I also know your reacting. Better yet, I know who you're reacting to."

Yahan didn't like the way he worded that sentence and tensed. She had heard a fair amount about this man. He had been nicknamed the Miracle Worker after he had winged a scrapped number, and had some of the more powerful Sekirei under him, but from what she had heard, he didn't wing those who weren't reacting to him. But appearances can be deceiving.

"I'm not going to be your Sekirei if that's what you mean."

Shaking his head, Dante replied, "No, no, I know it's not me your reacting to. The one you're reacting to just so happens to be one of my friends. He also just called telling me he had a reaction dream about you."

"Describe him." Yahan asked, still not convinced.

"Tall, black hair and clothes, silver eyes. Has air powers and goes by the name Tobias."

Yahan's eyes widened and her posture relaxed slighty. That definantly sounded like the man she had seen in her dreams. Unfortunately, now that her forced fight and run were over, she could feel exhaustion starting to set in as well as the pain from her wounds, causing her to get lighted headed. She was barely aware as she dropped her dagger loosely and started falling forwards, before feeling something grabbed and steady her as she blacked out.

Dante quickly caught Yahan before she keeled over. Quickly checking her pulse, he relaxed when he felt it going strong.

"Must be exhausted." He muttered, looking around. The sun was coming up on the horizon, painting it a light pink. Dawn would be in a few hours and he now had to get this Sekirei back to the inn.

"Place is getting more crowded by the week." He muttered before acting.

Quickly bending down, he picked up her knife and, finding the sheath for it on her hip, put it away. He then put on his mask, picked Yahan up bridal style, and started roof jumping, heading back towards the inn.

Tobias was pacing. Quitely, using a bed of air underneath his feet to make it so he made no noise, but he was pacing, muttering to himself and thinking hard. After calling Dante and said Timelord hanging up after telling him about the dream and Sekirei, Tobias was stressed. The reasons were mostly personal.

He had another Sekirei reacting to him. That confused him a great deal because, despite his looks, he wasn't the most social around females. Heck, when he had winged Kazehana that ws his first time being kissed. So he obviously had a bit of trouble being affectionate with Kazehana, though he gotten a bit better. Now he had another Sekirei reacting and would want to be winged. How the hell was he going to keep up with two "girlfriends" when he had never even had one!?

Normally he wouldn't feel this nervous, but this...he didn't know. It just drove him nuts. Two drop dead girls were attracted to him, and wanted to be with him. And from what Dante had told him and he he had gathered, it sounded like they would truely and unconditionally love him. Most guys would kill for this, but he wasn't most guys. He was a guy with wind powers who's mother figure was a time traveler that went anywhere and when at anytime.

Maybe that was the problem. He had never felt actual romantic love. River had given him love, or her type of love, but that was more a mothers love. But he had never felt the deeper kind of love. Connection and caring with a person who would do the same in return. Mostly due to his...past.

_"Monster."_

_"Experiment."_

_"Failure."_

"No!" Tobias clutched his head, teeth bared in a snarl and eyes clenched closed. "Get out of my head!" He hissed.

Hearing a thump outside, Tobias looked towards the window. Firing a Air Pulse, he saw Dante was in his armor, holding someone in the garden.

He quickly opened and jumped out, cushioning his fall before moving towards Dante.

"Dante."

Said teen turned and spotted Tobias instantly.

**"What are you...?"**

"Couldn't sleep." Tobias anticipated the question. "Not after you hung up on me and sounding rushed."

**"Sorry about that, but it just so happened I was chasing her when you called."**

Tobias looked at the person in Dante's arms and saw it was the girl from his dream. Yahan.

"What happened? She looks like she got attacked by a weedwhacker."

**"Good guess, but no. Try Mitsuki."**

Dante noticed that Tobias's hands twitched before clenching. He also noted a look of surprise then anger.

"That bastard Mikogami went after her?"

**"Don't worry, he didn't get to wing her. I scared off Mitsuki before she got her, but Yahan here is going to need some treatment."**

Tobias got his emotions back under control and took a deep breath, thinking. "You do realize we're going to have to explain where she came from to Miya. Not to mention that this inn is getting full fast."

**"Miya will understand and as for space..."**

Dante hesitated for a split second. This was a really big step, espically since he had just winged Tsukiumi...yesterday? Not really a lot of time despite the fact she had been in the inn for a few days. But he had ran out of time, plain and simple.

**"I think I'll tell them the truth."**

"Now?" Tobias asked, surprise written on his face. "But you just winged..."

**"The plain fact is I've run out of time,"** Dante cut him off. **"Things are accelerating faster then I anticipated, and if I'm right, I'm going to need all my resources at my disposal very soon. That means I need to tell them what I am."**

Tobias still didn't look happy. "Telling them your secret means mine and Jenny's are going to come out. I don't know if I'm ready for them to know," he also muttered something at the end Dante barely caught, and that made him grin.

'Including Kazehana.'

'Seems like he's really starting to care about her now.' Dante mused cheerfully, happy for his newest friend. But he was right, if he told them he was a universe jumper, then they would guess Tobias and Jenny were as well.

Not having a hand free to pat Tobias's shoulder, Dante nodded at him. **"I understand you want more time. Trust me, I always want more time... But we don't always get it Tobias."**

Tobias grimaced at the bitter tone in Dante's scrambeled voice. But he knew he was right. It was time to tell them. So he sighed, and nodded.

"All right, I guess...I guess we'll tell them. When?"

**"Don't know. A week maybe. Depends on how long it takes them to get used to Yahan and how long it takes for her to heal."**

Tobias looked at the Sekirei still in Dante's arms.

"Well, let's get her inside. Those wounds are going to get infected if we don't treat them."

And with that, the teens went inside, not looking forwards the days ahead.

_A week later_

"You guys ready?" Jenny asked.

"Nope." Dante replied flatly.

"Not even close." Tobias said in the same tone.

It has been a hellish week for both Dante and Tobias. Needless to say after everyone had woken up and found out about Yahan, things had turned to the worse. Miya had 'asked' where and when Dante had found her. That had sparked him explaining his entire night patrol thing and Tobias calling him last night to tell him about the dream. It had really just turned into one giant mess before long.

They had then spent the next few days doing normal stuff. Chiho had gotten back enough muscle mass she could walk again, but only for a few minutes before she had to sit. Tsukiumi had adjusted as well as she could've, but she and Musubi were constantly butting heads. Or rather Tsukiumi was butting heads with Musubi who simply made her opinion known. This was due to the fact that the water type Sekirei kept claiming Dante as her husband and...yeah you could see why. Really, it irritated everyone, even Akitsu sometimes had a mildly annoyed look on her normaly blank face.

Yahan woke up after a few days and after being assured she was safe by Miya, who had happened to be changing her bandages when she woke up, Dante and Tobias had talked to her. Dante had done most of the talking while Tobias had looked slightly uncomfortable being in the room for some reason. But after explanations and a day of Yahan recovering fully, she had, for lack of a better term, cornered Tobias and had him wing her. Since then she spent some time getting to know everyone and had also taken to sparring with Tobias in the morning, her teleportation through shadows power making it a slight challange for both.

Other then that though, Dante and Tobias had been quite. Not really interacting with everyone normally, more withdrawn then normal. Tobias going off during the day and the few times Kazehana and Yahan tried following him, he gave them the slip easily. Dante had retreated to his room and since Matsu had taken down the cameras in there, nobody had any clue what he was up to. As a result, most everyone was miserable during those times. Even Musubi was unhappy!

Jenny, having been worried about both of them, cornered them yesterday and demanded to know "What in the name of Galifrey" was wrong with them. Seeing no other choice, they told her that they planned to explain exactly who they were to everyone the next day. Leading to their current position, standing outside the dining room with everyone else inside.

"We don't really have to do this." Jenny suggested.

"Yes we do," Dante shot down that idea immediately. "They have a right to know who we really are Jenny. Let's face it, they know us, but not the real us. They need to know where we come from."

Jenny nodded glumly. "I know, but...I just don't...like this."

"None of us do." Tobias flatly said, looking at the door. He looked completely calm, but that image was ruined by the fingers drumming away quickly at his right leg. "But let's face it, if anybody would be as accepting of this secret, it'd be our Sekirei."

Everyone was quite for a minute more, then Dante broke it.

"Let's get this over with."

And without preamble, he opened the door and walked through, the two teens right behind him.

The occupants of the room were instantly watching them with unblinking attention as they stepped though. Most of the Sekirei were in their groups, Dante's on the right side of the table, Tobias's on the left, while Miya and Kagari were sitting besides each other at the head, along with Chiho and Uzume.

"So what's this about Dante?" Uzume asked, frowning with her arms crossed under her bust.

Dante didn't immediatly answer, instead taking his time to sit down and get comfortable, Tobias and Jenny doing the same. Kazehana and Yahan also noticed Tobias wasn't using his normal cushion, but actually sitting on the ground. They also felt he was extremely nervous and uncomfortable through the bond.

Once they were seated and comfortably, Dante took a breath to sooth his nerves. He may have done this more times then he cared to count, but each one was nerve racking nonetheless.

"Well. Simply put, we're telling you all about ourselves."

Most everyone didn't really get what he was saying and Yahan said so.

"How is this in anyway bad or extraordinary? I may be new here compared to everyone else, but even I know about you three."

Jenny shook her head. "No, specifically where we come from and our...past."

Now everyone looked surprised, Miya and the older tenets of the inn specifically.

"Are you sure?" Kazehana asked, looking just as shocked.

Dante nodded. "We've been here long enough that we trust you. Besides, considering what's coming, you need to know."

"What do you mean 'what's coming?'" Kagari really didn't like the sound of that.  
"One thing at a time. First, let me put something up."

Dante dug through his pockets and pulled out a circular peice of metal the size of his hand with blinking lights on it. He set it on the table and said, "Activate field."

The device beeped before glowing yellow. The light then spread from it like food coloring in water, sending out misty tendrils through the room. After a minute, the light faded.

"What was that?"

"Truth field." Dante said. "It's to prove everything we're about to tell you is true and we're not lying."

Uzume snorted. "And you expect us to believe that...how?"

Now here Dante let a smirk cross his face. "Uzume, how much do you love Chiho exactly?"

"A lot." Was what she meant to say. What came out of her mouth was slightly diffrent.  
"I love her so much I want to reinact a few seems from my favorite romance novels. Like for example, I want her to do this one move called "The Shocker" which is basically taking her pinky, pointer and middle finger and-"

She then realized what was coming out of her mouth and immediately covered it, as her face turned a new shade of red Dante had truely never seen before. Chiho didn't look much better with steam shooting out of her head.

"I didn't mean to say that!" Uzume mumbled from behind her hand.

Dante in the meantime was shaking trying not to laugh, holding his sides while snickers were escaping his mouth. Most everyone who knew where Uzume ws going with that sentence were looking at her in shock, or like Dante, amusement.

After getting himself under control, Dante sighed and wipped his eye with his finger. "Oh, oh that was good. I love it when people do that."

"You are a really sick and twisted bastard Dante." Kagari mumbled, then seemed to realize what he had said next to Miya, and also slapped a hand to his mouth, looking shocked.

"What the hell is..." Kazehana cut herself off, not sure if she should talk considering what had just happened with the other two Sekirei.

Still feeling mischievous, Dante decided to mess with Uzume a bit more. "Hey Uzume, would you say you're perverted?"

"No."

"Yes, and a lesbian." She smacked her hand to her mouth again, impossibly turning redder then before.

Dante, still smiling, stated, "That enough proof for you people?"

Needless to say, most everyone nodded though nobody talked.

"Now, just to prove it works on us, somebody, anybody ask me a question."

Miya decided to take a crack at it and asked, "How old are you?"

"No clue, but somewhere around 650-700." Dante said conversationally.

You could literally taste the shock in the air. Electic.

After a full 5 minutes of silence, Kagari whispered, "What?"

Dante sighed. "Now you see why I put up a truth field. But, I'll start from the beginning."


End file.
